Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has criticised Archbishop Emeritus John Onaiyekan of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja for statements he made during an appearance on Arise Television.
In a Prime Time segment on Arise News last Friday, Cardinal Onaiyekan claimed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had rejected the assessment of the economy and security situation in Nigeria, provided by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, during a recent meeting at the State House.
He said: “When the nation is bleeding, you cannot expect a polite meeting with the Head of State. 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.
“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.”
The cleric further noted that a memorandum presented to the President reflected the collective position of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference after wide consultations across the country.
“We are not politicians running for office. We are religious leaders who feel we have a duty not just to preach our doctrines but also to address the lives of our people.”
Reacting through a post on his X handle, @BwalaDaniel, the Special Adviser to the President declared that Cardinal Onaiyekan “is more political than spiritual.”
While he maintained that the cleric was not speaking for Christians, he further alleged that the Catholics as an institution have always supported former presidential candidate of the Labour Party and now presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress in the forthcoming general elections, Peter Obi.
His post read: “Cardinal Onaiyekan wasn’t speaking for Christian’s; he was speaking for Catholics, the very institutions rooting for Peter Obi @PeterObi in fact, likely the institution where Peter Obi also said in 2022 “take back your country “. Therefore, the Cardinal is more political than spiritual. And not all catholic members are supporting Peter Obi.
“The president @officialABAT was well within his right to disagree with their assertion as regards Nigeria’s economy based purely on facts, statistics and numbers put into context.
“Ironically, the same priest would rebuke their members if the members said “we are suffering or we are poor” they would tell them to rather say “we are doing great and or we are rich even when they are suffering or poor”
“There is a body comprising all Christian’s including the Catholics and catholic bishops conference and that body’s position is neutral and should be so, otherwise, it is political.”