Former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, on Tuesday, paid a visit to the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, at the Defence House.
The development comes one week before the swearing-in ceremony of the president-elect.
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A source in Tinubu’s camp confirmed Blair’s visit, saying he was in the country to have a ‘crucial diplomatic meeting’ with the two-term governor of Lagos State.
“I don’t have all the details yet. But I believe it has to do with fostering a bilateral relationship between Nigeria and the United Kingdom. I hope you are aware that the US Secretary also called Asiwaju last week,” he said.
In attendance at the meeting were Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila; and Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima.
The PUNCH reported how the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, spoke with Tinubu on the phone on Tuesday and emphasised his continued commitment to further strengthening the US-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration.
During their conversation, Tinubu promised to hit the ground running and unify the country upon his assumption of office on May 29. He also pledged to ensure positive relations with the United States.
The President-elect said that among his immediate priorities would be to deliver institutional reforms and development programmes to deepen our democratic institutions and bring help to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
He also expressed his determination to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy and faithfully serve the people as their president.
During the talks that lasted about 20 minutes, Tinubu spoke about his eventful sojourn in America in the 1970s, where he graduated with honours as an accountant in 1979.
As of the time of filing this story, no official statement has been released by the media handler of the president-elect on the agenda of the meeting.
Quadri Olaitan is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, public affairs, and human-interest stories.
