TWO prominent figures in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), namely former Kaduna Central senator Shehu Sani and Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, have thrown their weight behind the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) following the bishops’ criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s handling of Nigeria’s worsening economic hardship, insecurity and political climate.
Their interventions followed a public exchange between the Presidency and senior Catholic clerics after the bishops’ meeting with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja last week.
While presidential aides accused the bishops, led by emeritus Cardinal John Onaiyekan, of politicising their intervention and misrepresenting what transpired at the meeting, Sani and Kalu insisted that the clergy have a longstanding reputation for speaking truth to power irrespective of who occupies the Presidency.
Shehu Sani: Catholic bishops have always spoken truth to power
Reacting to the controversy, Shehu Sani defended the bishops’ integrity, saying they had consistently challenged governments since the military era without partisan considerations.
In a post on his X account, the former lawmaker wrote: “From the era of military rule and throughout the period of civilian governments, the Catholic Bishops have a consistent history of telling truth to power. They have never been partisan. Every president they visited, they brought him a gift of bitter kola instead of olive oil.”
Also, speaking in a video posted on his Facebook page, Kalu said the bishops’ message was intended to strengthen governance rather than attack the government.
“To me, the Catholic bishops are the conscience of the country. And once they give advice, their advice is not for or against. Their advice is just for any sitting president, any sitting leader, to see things the way it should be.”
According to the former Abia State governor, there is no doubt that Nigerians are experiencing economic hardship, although he argued that the country’s problems predate Tinubu’s administration.
“There’s difficulty in Nigeria, there’s no doubt. And it’s not the fault of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
Kalu, however, acknowledged that while the administration had achieved some macroeconomic reforms, ordinary Nigerians were yet to feel their impact.
“Even if we politicians are lying to him and say things are good everywhere, the Catholic bishops can never say that. And that’s why they are Catholic bishops.”
Backstory
The ICIR reports that the controversy followed a meeting between President Tinubu and the leadership of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria at the Presidential Villa on July 28.
Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, in an interview on ARISE News on Friday, July 31, disclosed details of the meeting, noting that the bishops presented a memorandum expressing concern over Nigeria’s deteriorating economic conditions, persistent insecurity, rising poverty and what they described as an unhealthy political atmosphere.
Onaiyekan said the bishops informed Tinubu that worsening economic conditions were hurting poor Nigerians and that insecurity remained a major concern.
“When the nation is bleeding, you cannot expect a polite meeting with the Head of State. We had to let him know. And his reply is that the nation is not bleeding. We told him the economy is not helping our poor people; he told us the economy is doing fine. Frankly speaking, he told us quite clearly that he did not agree with us.
“Again, we were not surprised. We didn’t expect him to agree with us. We have done our duty, we have delivered our message, and we have a feeling that somehow, along the line, somebody will show him a few of the things we said,” he stated.
The cleric maintained that the bishops were not seeking political office and had no interest in opposing the president but were fulfilling their responsibility to speak on issues affecting Nigerians.
He also dismissed suggestions that the bishops represented any political party, saying the conference’s position reflected extensive consultations among Catholic bishops across the country.
Presidency pushes back
However, on August 1, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, criticised Onaiyekan for publicly discussing the contents of what he described as a private meeting with the president.
Ajayi described the interview as “an abuse of clerical privilege,” arguing that the bishops had every right to express their concerns during the meeting but should not have publicly presented their own account afterwards.
According to him, Tinubu acknowledged Nigeria’s challenges but also highlighted measurable improvements in the economy, social welfare and security.
Ajayi argued that the president possessed intelligence and operational reports unavailable to the public and therefore has a broader understanding of the country’s security situation.
Bwala alleges political motive
Presidential Adviser on Policy Communication Daniel Bwala also criticised Onaiyekan’s remarks.
In a post on X, Bwala argued that the cardinal was speaking for the Catholic Church rather than for Christians generally.
He further alleged that the Catholic Church had historically shown support for Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi and claimed that the bishops’ intervention should be viewed within that context.
Bwala insisted that Tinubu was justified in rejecting the bishops’ assessment because the administration’s position was supported by economic data and official statistics.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M