ABUJA — All Progressives Congress chieftain Bashir Ahmad has dismissed claims by a United States lobbying firm that President Bola Tinubu will not secure a private meeting with US President Donald Trump during the United Nations General Assembly, describing the assertion as a political attack presented as established fact.
Ahmad’s reaction followed a statement issued on Monday by US lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, which claimed that a meeting Tinubu had been seeking with Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly would not take place.
The firm alleged that senior members of the Trump administration had indicated that the US president would not hold a private meeting with Tinubu over an allegation involving heroin trafficking.
The claim has drawn a strong response from Ahmad, who rejected the presentation of the allegation as an established basis for determining whether the two presidents would meet.
According to the APC chieftain, Tinubu remains the democratically elected President of Nigeria, and allegations made against him should not automatically be treated as proven facts.
Ahmad argued that serious accusations must be subjected to credible evidence and due process rather than being presented as established conclusions because they support a particular political narrative.
He said the lobbying firm’s statement amounted to a political attack “dressed up as certainty”, particularly because it purported to predict a diplomatic decision that had not been officially announced by the relevant authorities.
The APC chieftain also questioned the assertion that Trump would refuse to meet Tinubu or that the Nigerian president would face embarrassment at the United Nations.
He maintained that such a conclusion could not responsibly be reached without an official position from the White House or the relevant diplomatic authorities.
“Unless the White House or the relevant diplomatic authorities make such a position official, these claims are nothing more than speculation presented as fact,” Ahmad argued.
The controversy centres on the anticipated interaction between the Nigerian and US presidents during the United Nations General Assembly, with the lobbying firm’s statement seeking to portray the possibility of a private meeting as effectively ruled out.
Ahmad, however, insisted that diplomatic engagements should not be determined by unverified claims or political messaging. He maintained that allegations, regardless of how frequently or loudly they are repeated, do not amount to convictions.
His comments also reflected a broader objection to the treatment of allegations against political figures as established facts without the corresponding legal process or credible evidence.
The APC chieftain said that Tinubu’s position as Nigeria’s elected president should be recognised when discussing potential diplomatic engagements, while any accusations made against him should be addressed through appropriate evidentiary and legal procedures.
The dispute therefore remains centred on whether the claim concerning a possible Trump-Tinubu meeting represents an established diplomatic position or an assertion made by an outside lobbying organisation.
For Ahmad, the absence of an official statement from the White House or relevant diplomatic authorities means that claims about Trump refusing to meet Tinubu, or the Nigerian president being embarrassed at the United Nations, should not be treated as confirmed developments.
‘It’s Political Attack’ — Bashir Ahmad Reacts to US Lobbying Firm’s Claim That Tinubu Cannot Meet Trump
