Tinubu’s wife leads interfaith fast-breaking, preaches unity in Abuja

At the First Lady’s Interfaith Breaking of Fast (Iftar & Lent) held on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, CON, gathered wives of state governors, female political office holders and other eminent Nigerian women for a symbolic evening of prayer, reflection and solidarity across faith lines. The event, which brought together Christian and Muslim women leaders, was convened to jointly break the Ramadan and Lenten fasts and to underscore the message that Nigeria’s strength lies in peaceful coexistence and mutual respect among its diverse religious communities.

In her remarks, the First Lady said the fact that the Christian Lenten season and the Muslim Ramadan fast are holding at the same time this year is a direct message from God to Nigerians to embrace harmony and live as one people under God. Drawing from her nearly four-decade interfaith marriage to President Bola Tinubu, she noted that their home has demonstrated that Christians and Muslims can live together in peace, mutual respect and understanding for many years without rancour, insisting that such tolerance must be reflected more broadly in the national space.

Senator Tinubu stressed that women in positions of influence, whether by virtue of their own office or that of their spouses, have a critical responsibility to model integrity, compassion and excellence in service to the nation. She urged participants to reject the culture of entitlement and to instead focus on hard work, sacrifice and genuine concern for the welfare of ordinary Nigerians, especially at a time when many citizens are facing economic hardship.

The First Lady also used the occasion to charge older women to be intentional in mentoring younger Nigerians, describing older generations as “the old school that is still modern” with real wisdom and intelligence to pass on. She maintained that without integrity, any claim to success is hollow, stressing that a person’s name and character must align consistently, and warning that public trust can only be sustained when leaders are seen to do what is right in the eyes of everyone.​

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Guest speaker at the interfaith gathering, Bishop Sally William Chinebu of Dominion Church International, reinforced the theme of the programme by urging women to pursue excellence, compassion and wholeness in their daily lives and engagements. She observed that when women rise with a shared sense of purpose and moral conviction, they can become an unprecedented force for national renewal, peace and development.​

The high-profile event was attended by former First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan, the Wife of the Vice President, Hajia Nana Shettima, the Wife of former Vice President, Hajia Amina Namadi Sambo, the Wife of the Senate President, Mrs Ekaette Akpabio, serving female ministers, female members of the National Assembly, female judges and other women leaders from different sectors. According to the media office of the First Lady, the interfaith fast-breaking is part of ongoing efforts by Senator Tinubu to use the spiritual seasons of Ramadan and Lent to promote interreligious understanding, strengthen social cohesion and rally women around a shared agenda of nation-building.