Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Jimoh Ibrahim, has dismissed speculation that President Bola Tinubu or members of his family face arrest or movement restrictions in the United States while attending the United Nations General Assembly.
Ibrahim said neither the Nigerian mission in New York nor the President had received any notification from US authorities imposing restrictions on Tinubu’s movement.
The ambassador referred to the 1947 agreement governing the United Nations headquarters in New York, which requires the United States to facilitate transit for representatives of member states and certain accompanying persons traveling on official UN business.
He said those provisions protected access to and from the UN headquarters district during official participation in General Assembly activities.
Ibrahim’s comments were intended to counter social-media claims that the President could be detained during the trip.
The envoy stressed that allegations or investigative records should not be equated with a criminal conviction and said due process remained necessary before criminal liability could be established.
He also acknowledged that the privileges surrounding UN-related transit should not be interpreted as a blanket prohibition on all lawful investigative activity by US authorities.
According to Ibrahim, law-enforcement agencies may lawfully seek information or conduct investigations where legal requirements are met, but an investigation or request for information does not itself prove criminal conduct.
The statement represents Nigeria’s diplomatic position on Tinubu’s planned attendance: there is no known US notification restricting his movement for UNGA.
Any broader legal questions concerning historical records or investigations in the United States would have to be assessed separately under applicable US law.
