The Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has declined to engage with criticisms from the Presidency, saying Catholic bishops had already delivered their message to President Bola Tinubu and were only interested in whether their concerns would lead to improved governance.
Daily Trust had reported how the former Archbishop of Abuja accused President Tinubu’s administration of being determined to win the 2027 elections “by all means”.
He also warned that the resources available to the government could undermine the credibility of the electoral process.
But in a statement on Saturday, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temotope Ajayi, described Onaiyekan’s action as an abuse of privilege.
Ajayi said there was something fundamentally inappropriate about Cardinal John Onaiyekan granting a television interview to offer his own account and interpretation of what transpired during the private meeting between the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) and President Bola Tinubu.
The exchange followed a meeting between the CBCN and President Tinubu at the State House, Abuja, on July 28, 2026, during which the bishops presented their assessment of the country’s economy and security situation.
However, speaking in an exclusive interview with Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, on Monday, Onaiyekan said the CBCN had no intention of engaging in a public exchange with government spokespersons over the meeting.
He said the bishops’ intervention was based on their moral responsibility to Nigerians.
Onaiyekan said, “We didn’t go there just as Catholic bishops pushing the Catholic agenda. No. We went there as people who are with the spiritual mandate to speak to anybody in the name of God.
“I would not even answer that question. We have no response for them. We have spoken and the only response we are waiting for is whether it is affecting the way they are governing.
“That some of the supporters of the government and the state and spokesperson may have their own idea about what they think they should be saying on behalf of their principal, is their business, not mine.
“As for response to the things we are hearing, I don’t even have to say anything because the social media is full of response from Nigerian people and that for me is more than enough.”
He explained that the audience with President Tinubu was initiated by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria after months of waiting for approval.
According to him, the meeting was neither intended as an evangelistic mission nor an attempt to advance the interests of the Catholic Church, but an opportunity to present the bishops’ concerns about governance and the welfare of Nigerians as part of their pastoral responsibility.
He added, “The Bishops visited President Tinubu last week and we requested an audience. It took some months before we were granted the audience and we prepared to see him, and the main reason we wanted to see him was not to go on an evangelical mission.
“We didn’t go there to preach to him and try to see whether we could convert him to our Catholic Church, but we went there to share our views and thoughts about the government which he heads, hoping that our ideas will be taken into consideration, So that is what took us to the statehouse.”
Onaiyekan, however, expressed hope that the government would remain open to further engagement on issues affecting Nigerians.
The Cardinal said, “We are hoping that our meeting with the President or our dialogue with the government of Nigeria did not end with that visit.”
According to him, the bishops were still expecting the government to create another opportunity for a more detailed conversation.
He stated, “We are hoping that somehow, he will invite us, not necessarily to meet him, I mean President Tinubu, but at least to open up fairness for us to give more information, more concerns that we have, than we could give in the ten minutes talk that we gave to him.”
Onaiyekan maintained that the bishops had no partisan political ambitions and urged the government to focus on the substance of their message rather than the personalities behind it.
He said, “I have told you already that I am not even prepared to start engaging anybody. Don’t forget that I was not defending my thesis. The document was prepared by the bishops of Nigeria, and we are a big number, and it was passed unanimously.
“We don’t have any political ambitions for anything. Even our church does not even allow us to get engaged in party politics. So, even if I wanted to be a presidential candidate, I can’t be.”
On the economy, Onaiyekan acknowledged the government’s emphasis on macroeconomic indicators but argued that improvements should ultimately be measured by the quality of life experienced by ordinary Nigerians.
He said, “If we admit that the role of government is the welfare of citizens, then it means we are not going to judge the success of our government on the basis of the statistics from GDP, from the World Bank, or whatever. The important thing is, what, how is the life of the Nigerian?”
News Credit to our media partner DailyTrust Home .
