Catholic Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, has said he is neither embarrassed nor intimidated by criticism from the Federal Government over his public remarks about a meeting between Catholic bishops and President Bola Tinubu.
The 82-year-old cleric maintained that his appearance on television was aimed at communicating the concerns raised by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), rather than pleasing the government or any individual.
Speaking in a video shared by SYMFONI TV on Wednesday, Onaiyekan said he had no reason to be concerned about the reaction from the Presidency to his account of the meeting with Tinubu.
“I didn’t go to Arise to please the government, or to just please people, but to tell the truth. That’s all I stand for,” Onaiyekan said.
He further dismissed any suggestion that the criticism could intimidate him, stressing that he was already 82 and had nothing to fear.
“I cannot be embarrassed. I’m 82 years old; nobody can embarrass me. And I’m not afraid of anybody. Nobody, at this stage now, are they going to arrest me, carry me to where?” he said.
The cleric also urged Nigerians to value the freedom to criticise those in government, noting that religious leaders in some African countries do not enjoy the same liberty.
“And we are still lucky in this Nigeria that we can still talk. We shouldn’t take that for granted. There are many countries in Africa where no bishop dares to talk like we do here,” he said.
Onaiyekan clarified that his comments following the meeting with Tinubu represented the collective position of the Catholic bishops who attended the engagement and were not merely his personal opinions.
“No, mind you, I didn’t talk on my own now. I spoke on behalf of my fellow bishops. We drafted a statement which contained all that I said in the interview. So, all the bishops of Nigeria spoke that way. It was their voice I was echoing,” he said.
He added that the bishops remained free to express their concerns within their respective dioceses, while noting that other religious leaders had also raised concerns about the state of the country.
“I cannot speak on behalf of other religious leaders. Everybody has their own job to do, but many of the other religious leaders have supported us.
“When it comes to what is happening to Nigeria, the poverty, the suffering, we are all in the same boat now,” he said.
The development followed a July 28 meeting between President Tinubu and a delegation of Catholic bishops at the State House in Abuja.
The delegation, led by CBCN President Archbishop Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso of Kaduna, included Onaiyekan, Cardinal Peter Okpaleke, Bishop Matthew Kukah of Sokoto and other senior Catholic clerics.
During the meeting, the bishops raised concerns about economic hardship, insecurity, democracy, the 2027 elections, religious freedom and the return of mission schools.
Tinubu, however, disagreed with some of their positions, maintaining that the economy was improving and that the Independent National Electoral Commission was not biased.
The President also advised the bishops to engage state governors over the return of mission schools, recalling that he had done the same while serving as governor of Lagos State.
Three days after the meeting, Onaiyekan appeared on Arise TV, where he discussed the engagement and said the bishops had spoken frankly with the President about the challenges facing Nigerians.
The Presidency subsequently criticised his decision to publicly discuss the meeting. Temitope Ajayi, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, described the disclosure of details from what he considered a private engagement as inappropriate.
Despite the criticism, Onaiyekan has maintained that he has no reason to be embarrassed, insisting that the bishops’ intervention was driven by their concern about the welfare of Nigerians.