Rev. Jesse Jackson: Tinubu Sends Envoys to Deliver Condolences

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has dispatched a five-member delegation to represent Nigeria at the funeral of Rev. Jesse Jackson, the renowned American civil rights leader, activist, and former presidential candidate, who passed away on February 17, 2026, in Chicago at the age of 84.

The delegation is led by Senator George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and includes the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, the Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, the Special Presidential Envoy for Global and Pan-African Affairs, Brian Browne, and the Senior Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs and International Relations, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaye.

The team will deliver President Tinubu’s condolences to the Jackson family and honour the late leader’s enduring contributions to global justice and African liberation.

In a prior tribute, President Tinubu hailed Rev. Jackson “a great friend of Nigeria and Africa,” emphasizing his role as a moral voice and a formidable opponent of apartheid in South Africa. “He played a leading role in the campaign for the release of Nelson Mandela and other African National Congress leaders and was instrumental in securing international support for sanctions against the apartheid regime,” the president wrote.

The burial proceedings began on February 26 with a lying-in-state at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition in Chicago. Additional services were held in South Carolina and Washington, D.C., including a lying-in-state at the South Carolina Statehouse from March 1-5.

The events will conclude with a “People’s Celebration” at the House of Hope in Chicago on March 6, followed by a private homegoing ceremony on March 7 at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.