President Bola Tinubu has conferred the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas.
This followed a protest by the Reps over the president’s earlier conferment of the Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) on the speaker and Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun.
The debate over the speaker’s eligibility for the GCON, the second-highest national honour in Nigeria, pitched the lawmakers against their Senate counterparts.
The Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, Bayo Onanuga, confirmed the development in a statement on Friday night.
The statement read: “President Tinubu was persuaded by the House of Representatives position and has decided to correct the historical error and oversight.
“Thus, he has decided to upgrade the Speaker to GCON from CFR, in accordance with the National Order of Precedence.”