Abuja, Nigeria – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has conferred the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), Nigeria’s second-highest national honor, on House of Representatives Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.

The upgrade comes after Tinubu initially awarded Abbas the Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) during his 64th Independence Anniversary Speech on October 1.

A House of Representatives debate ensued, calling on Tinubu to confer a higher honor on Abbas. Tinubu, persuaded by the House’s position, remedied the historical error and oversight by upgrading Abbas from CFR to GCON.

The Speaker, Senate President, other principal officers of the National Assembly, and the Chief Justice of Nigeria will be formally decorated with their new honors later.