President Bola Tinubu has appointed a five-member delegation to represent Nigeria at the funeral ceremonies of American civil rights icon Jesse Jackson in the United States, US.
Jackson, who passed away on February 17 at the age of 84, is being honoured through a series of memorial events across the US.
According to a statement issued by the State House on Wednesday, the Nigerian delegation will formally convey the president’s condolences to the bereaved family during the burial rites.
The team will be headed by George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
Other members include Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, minister of state for foreign affairs; Hannatu Musawa, minister of arts, culture and creative economy; Brian Browne, special presidential envoy for global and pan-African affairs; and Sola Enikanolaye, senior special assistant on foreign affairs and international relations.
In an earlier tribute, Tinubu described the late cleric and activist as a great friend of Nigeria and Africa.
“He was a moral voice and a formidable resistance to apartheid in South Africa. He played a leading role in the campaign for the release from prison of Nelson Mandela and other African National Congress leaders. He won critical support for sanctions against the then apartheid government,” he had said.
Jackson, a former US presidential candidate and founder of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, was widely recognised for championing racial equality and lending strong support to anti-apartheid struggles on the African continent.
The funeral programme commenced on February 26 with a lying-in-state at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters in Chicago.
Memorial activities later moved to South Carolina and Washington, DC, including a lying-in-state at the South Carolina State House between March 1 and 5.
A public people’s celebration is set for March 6 at the House of Hope in Chicago, followed by a private homegoing service on March 7 at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.
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