Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has declined to engage with criticisms from the Presidency over his comments on a recent meeting between the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) and President Bola Tinubu.
Onaiyekan said the bishops had already delivered their message to the President and were now interested in seeing whether their concerns would translate into improved governance and better living conditions for Nigerians.
Daily Trust had reported that the former Archbishop of Abuja accused the Tinubu 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.
However, in a statement issued on Saturday, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, criticised Onaiyekan’s decision to grant a television interview to discuss the private meeting between the bishops and President Tinubu.
Ajayi described the action as an abuse of privilege, saying there was something fundamentally inappropriate about Onaiyekan offering his own account and interpretation of what transpired during the meeting.
The controversy followed the July 28, 2026 meeting between the CBCN and President Tinubu at the State House in Abuja, during which the bishops presented their assessment of Nigeria’s economic 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 bishops had no intention of engaging government spokespersons in a public exchange over the meeting.
He said the bishops’ intervention was motivated by their moral and spiritual responsibility to Nigerians.
“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.”
Onaiyekan explained that the audience with Tinubu was initiated by the CBCN after months of waiting for approval.
He said the meeting was not intended as an evangelistic mission or an attempt to advance the interests of the Catholic Church, but an opportunity for the bishops to present their concerns about governance and the welfare of Nigerians.
“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,” he said.
The Cardinal expressed hope that the meeting would not mark the end of engagement between the Catholic bishops and the Federal Government on issues affecting Nigerians.
“We are hoping that our meeting with the President or our dialogue with the government of Nigeria did not end with that visit,” he said.
Onaiyekan said the bishops were also hoping that the government would create another opportunity for a more detailed discussion on their concerns.
“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,” he stated.
The former Abuja Archbishop maintained that the bishops had no partisan political ambitions and urged the government to focus on the substance of their message rather than the individuals who delivered it.
“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,” he said.
On the economy, Onaiyekan acknowledged the government’s focus on macroeconomic indicators but argued that the ultimate measure of economic performance should be the welfare and living conditions of ordinary Nigerians.
“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?” he said.
