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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Culture & Society

At 82, nobody can embarrass, intimidate me – Onaiyekan

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Catholic Archbishop Emeritus John Onaiyekan stated he is neither embarrassed nor intimidated by criticism from the Nigerian Presidency regarding his comments on a meeting between bishops and President Bola Tinubu.
  • The 82-year-old cleric emphasized he spoke on behalf of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria, not just personally, and highlighted the freedom of religious leaders to speak publicly in Nigeria compared to other African nations.
  • Onaiyekan stressed that the bishops' concerns, including economic hardship and insecurity, reflect the collective position of the conference and that other religious leaders also voice concerns about the country's condition.

Catholic Archbishop Emeritus John Onaiyekan, at 82, has asserted his immunity from embarrassment and intimidation, particularly in response to criticism from Nigeria's Presidency. The criticism stemmed from his public account of a meeting between Catholic bishops and President Bola 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.

— Archbishop John OnaiyekanResponding to criticism from the Presidency about his account of a meeting with President Tinubu.

Onaiyekan clarified that his television appearance was to convey the concerns of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria, not to appease any government official. He stated, "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." He questioned the notion of being intimidated at his age, asking, "And I’m not afraid of anybody. Nobody, at this stage now, are they going to arrest me, carry me to where?"

I cannot be embarrassed. I’m 82 years old; nobody can embarrass me. And I’m not afraid of anybody.

— Archbishop John OnaiyekanAsserting his lack of fear and intimidation in the face of criticism.

The cleric also pointed out the relative freedom religious leaders in Nigeria possess to critique the government, noting that such open discourse is not possible in many other African countries. "And we are still lucky in this Nigeria that we can still talk. We shouldn’t take that for granted," he remarked.

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.

— Archbishop John OnaiyekanHighlighting the freedom of religious leaders to speak publicly in Nigeria.

He further explained that his statements accurately represented the unified stance of the bishops who attended the meeting. "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," Onaiyekan said. The bishops had raised issues concerning economic hardship, insecurity, democracy, the 2027 elections, and religious freedom during their meeting with President Tinubu.

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.

— Archbishop John OnaiyekanClarifying that his comments represented the collective position of the Catholic bishops.
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Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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