Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Digital Media, O’tega Ogra, has dismissed a report suggesting that the President may be unable to secure a meeting with US President Donald Trump.
The reaction followed claims by a US-based lobbying firm that Tinubu had been unable to secure a meeting with Trump despite Nigeria’s efforts to strengthen relations with the United States.
The US firm, Von Batten-Montague-York had in a statement on Monday revealed that the meeting “Tinubu has been pushing for” with Trump at the United Nations General Assembly, UNGA “will not happen.”
Reacting to the report, Bashir Ahmad, a former presidential aide, described the claim as a political attack rather than a credible assessment of Nigeria-US relations.
Ahmad argued that attempts to portray Tinubu as being rejected by the US administration were politically motivated and aimed at undermining the President’s international engagements.
The APC chieftain argued that “serious accusations should be tested against credible evidence and due process, not presented as facts simply because they fit a particular political narrative.
“It is equally irresponsible to declare, in advance, that President Donald Trump will refuse to meet President Tinubu or that the Nigerian President will be embarrassed at the United Nations.
“Unless the White House or the relevant diplomatic authorities make such a position official, these claims are nothing more than speculation presented as fact.”
He maintained that diplomatic relations between countries should not be judged solely by whether their leaders hold a particular meeting, noting that official engagements are influenced by several diplomatic considerations.
The controversy comes amid heightened political activities ahead of the 2027 general elections, with opposition figures and supporters of the administration increasingly trading accusations over Tinubu’s domestic and international record.
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