Oluremi Tinubu, first lady of Nigeria, has called for a more balanced global understanding of the country’s security challenges.
She made the call on Wednesday when she hosted Justin Welby, former archbishop of Canterbury, for talks on interfaith dialogue.
Remi said inaccurate portrayals of Nigeria’s situation could undermine ongoing efforts to promote peace and unity, adding that the international community must “get the right perspective” in order to support meaningful solutions.
“Listening to one side of the story and then concluding is a wrong approach to conflict resolution,” she said.
“Thank you for opening up this Interfaith Dialogue, and I believe that you should also invite not just the Christians and Muslims but also the Nigeria Security to the dialogue to know what they have been doing.”
The first lady also commended Nigeria’s armed forces for their gallantry and efforts in tackling insecurity, and called on religious leaders globally to promote teachings that encourage peaceful coexistence.
Welby, in his remarks, said his visit is aimed at advancing dialogue on peace and religious harmony.
He announced plans for an interfaith dialogue meeting in London next week, convened by the Global Forum for Peace under the patronage of Abdallah Bin Baya.
The meeting will bring together 12 Christian and 12 Muslim representatives to foster mutual understanding and develop solutions to interfaith conflicts.
“We want to contribute to what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing to promote peace, interfaith wise. All we are after is enduring peace,” he said.
“I am here to smooth the way ahead of the Interfaith dialogue and make sure the meeting addresses all that it should.”
The former archbishop was accompanied by Richard Montgomery, the British high commissioner to Nigeria.
The meeting follows a recent visit by President Bola Tinubu and the first lady to the United Kingdom, where interfaith engagement featured prominently on their itinerary.
