Amaechi criticizes Presidency for attacking Catholic Church over Onaiyekan's statements

Former Minister of Transportation and African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi, has slammed the Presidency for its reaction to comments made by John Onaiyekan, the Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja. He says the attacks are disrespectful to the Catholic Church and the Christian faith.

Amaechi spoke on Politics Today, a Channels Television show aired on Tuesday. He defended Onaiyekan’s remarks after a recent meeting between President Bola Tinubu and Catholic bishops.

In a media interview, Onaiyekan shared details about the discussions held at the State House in Abuja. He mentioned that Tinubu’s facial expression showed he was not happy with the bishops’ views on the economy. Instead of accepting their concerns, the President argued that the economy was getting better.

Some aides of the president criticized Onaiyekan for speaking out after the meeting. One aide accused him of abusing "clerical privilege."

But Amaechi, who is also a Catholic and a former governor of Rivers State, said there was nothing wrong with the cleric talking about issues discussed in a meeting that included journalists and cameras. He said, "The reason the bishops went to see the president was to discuss issues concerning the state of the nation and concerns about how credible the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would be during the general election."

He believes the presidency should show the Catholic Church and its leaders the respect they deserve, rather than attacking them publicly. He argued that bishops and cardinals have respected positions, similar to senior public officials.

"Every public meeting with the president is public. The moment you allow cameras into the office, it is no longer a private meeting. If the president wanted a private meeting, there would be no cameras and no journalists," he added.

Amaechi also disagreed with comments from the presidency that suggested "all is fair in politics." He said this view does not justify attacks on religious leaders.

Insulting my faith

The former minister stated that the criticism towards Onaiyekan feels like an attack on his Christian faith. "I believe in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. So when a group of people insult my faith, then I must stand up and protect it by all means."

He continued, "What the presidency is doing is insulting my faith. They are also insulting the Catholic Church."

To make his point clear, Amaechi compared the role of Catholic bishops to that of elected governors. He noted that the Catholic Bishop of Port Harcourt oversees the whole Rivers area, just like the governor manages Rivers State. The Bishop of Sokoto also has spiritual authority over Sokoto State.

"You don’t insult a bishop simply because he went to see the president," he said.

Draws a comparison with the Buhari administration

Amaechi recalled that Catholic bishops openly criticized former President Muhammadu Buhari's government over security issues. At that time, they did not face similar attacks from the government. "When the Catholic Church came after Buhari, we all kept quiet and looked for solutions to what we could do. We did not attack anyone at that time," he said.

He urged government officials to stop disrespecting religious leaders. "They should leave the Catholic Church alone. They should respect God, respect the Christian faith, and respect our bishops," he added.

Dismisses Wike’s comments

During the interview, Amaechi also brushed off recent remarks from the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. Wike had claimed that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar chose him as his running mate for financial reasons. Amaechi replied that he would not engage in a public back-and-forth with Wike. "I don’t respond to my subordinates. Wike never hired me," he said.

Amaechi’s comments come as political discussions grow between leading opposition figures and the Presidency. The debates are moving beyond politics to touch on issues involving religious leaders and public institutions.