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…Demands apology to Cardinal Onaiyekan, Catholic Church —
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the Presidency’s reported criticism of the Catholic Church and Cardinal John Onaiyekan, accusing the Tinubu administration of intolerance towards dissent and independent voices.
Mr Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), said the Presidency should have addressed the concerns raised by the Catholic bishops rather than attacking the clerics.
In a statement issued on Sunday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the former vice-president described the Presidency’s reaction as an attempt to intimidate and discredit religious leaders for speaking about the challenges confronting Nigerians.
“The Catholic Church has, for generations, stood as one of the moral voices of our nation. Its bishops and priests have consistently spoken for the poor, the oppressed and the vulnerable, irrespective of who occupies Aso Rock.
“Their duty is not to flatter those in power but to speak truth to power,” Mr Abubakar said.
He commended the Catholic bishops for what he described as their courage in speaking directly to President Bola Tinubu about the country’s challenges.
“The Catholic bishops demonstrated rare courage by looking the President in the face and telling him the bitter truth about the state of the nation. That is precisely what patriotic religious leaders are called to do—not to decorate power with praise, but to confront it with truth,” he said.
Mr Abubakar urged religious leaders across different denominations and faiths to speak out whenever the country’s interests were at stake.
“We urge other religious leaders, regardless of denomination or faith, to emulate this example by speaking truth to power whenever the nation’s interest demands it,” he added.
The former vice-president criticised the language allegedly used by the Presidency against Cardinal Onaiyekan, describing the cleric as a respected religious leader and an influential voice within the Catholic Church.
He said the Presidency’s reaction was disrespectful to the Church and millions of Nigerian Catholics.
“The commentary by the Tinubu Presidency against Cardinal John Onaiyekan—a respected voice, elder statesman and beacon of truth within the Catholic Church—was delivered in language unbecoming of a government.
“It amounted to sheer arrogance, not only towards the Church but towards millions of Nigerians who hold the Cardinal and the institution he represents in the highest esteem,” he said.
Mr Abubakar also accused the Presidency’s media team of attempting to reshape public perception of the engagement between President Tinubu and the Catholic bishops.
According to him, the alleged selective presentation and reframing of the meeting were intended to create a narrative favourable to the government and undermine the bishops’ credibility.
“What the media managers of the Tinubu administration attempted to do was to cancel and overwrite the voices of the revered Catholic bishops by selectively editing and reframing their engagement with the President in order to manufacture a narrative favourable to the government,” he said.
“That cynical exercise amounted to an affront to the integrity, credibility and moral authority of the bishops.”
Mr Abubakar said Cardinal Onaiyekan’s decision to speak with journalists after the Presidency’s response was aimed at placing the facts on record.
He said the cleric’s action did not justify what he described as an “uncouth and disrespectful” response from the President’s media handlers.
“Resorting to insults instead of addressing the issues only exposes the bankruptcy of their arguments,” he said.
The ADC presidential candidate accused the Presidency of attacking the cleric because he refused to join what he described as a growing group of individuals who defend the government without questioning its policies or performance.
“The Presidency is not a secret cult where only approved voices are permitted to speak. In a constitutional democracy, no one needs the permission of Aso Rock to tell the truth about the state of the nation,” he said.
Mr Abubakar further alleged that the administration had become accustomed to engaging religious leaders for political purposes.
“Perhaps the Presidency has become so accustomed to inviting ‘fake bishops’ that it now assumes every cleric can be recruited into political propaganda. But Catholic bishops are different.
“They are not political props, rented cheerleaders or praise singers. They are shepherds with a moral obligation to speak truth to power, regardless of whose interests are bruised. They cannot be used,” he said.
He said Cardinal Onaiyekan merely expressed concerns shared by many Nigerians over hunger, insecurity, rising poverty, unemployment and the high cost of living.
“Silencing or attacking him will not erase the harsh realities confronting ordinary citizens,” he said.
Mr Abubakar maintained that governments confident in their records should welcome criticism and use it as an opportunity for reflection and improvement.
“A government confident in its record welcomes criticism because it provides an opportunity for reflection and improvement. Only an insecure government wages war against honest voices while rewarding those who tell it only what it wants to hear,” he said.
He added that Nigeria’s democracy could not thrive if religious leaders, civil society organisations and citizens were expected to praise those in power before exercising their constitutional right to express their opinions.
“The Church has every right—and indeed a moral obligation—to speak whenever the welfare, dignity and future of Nigerians are threatened,” he said.
Mr Abubakar urged the Presidency to address the concerns raised by the Catholic bishops rather than attacking the clerics.
“The Presidency should stop shooting the messenger and start addressing the message. No amount of attacks on respected clerics will change the lived reality of Nigerians or absolve this administration of responsibility for the hardships its policies have inflicted on the people,” he said.
The former vice-president demanded an immediate and unreserved apology from the Presidency to Cardinal Onaiyekan, the Catholic Church and Catholic faithful across the country.
“The Presidency owes the Catholic Church, Cardinal John Onaiyekan and the entire Catholic faithful an immediate and unreserved apology.
“The reckless assault on respected men of God was not merely an attack on individuals; it was an affront to one of Nigeria’s most credible moral institutions and an insult to millions of faithful Catholics,” he said.
Mr Abubakar said the Tinubu administration would continue to face accusations of arrogance, intolerance and contempt for independent voices if it failed to apologise.
