The Christian Association of Nigeria, prominent Catholic bishops, two Catholic groups among others have berated Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, for
The Christian Association of Nigeria, prominent Catholic bishops, two Catholic groups among others have berated Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, for attacking Catholic leaders who visited President Muhammadu Buhari in Aso Rock last week. Others, who reacted to the governor’s statement, were the Archdiocese Emeritus, Catholic Archdiocese of Ibadan, Alaba Job, and the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah.
The Catholic bishops had, during a visit to the Presidential Villa on Thursday, told the President that his goodwill had depleted by his glaring failures. The bishops, under the aegis of Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, had expressed their disappointment with the state of the nation and told the President that Nigerians were angry as a result of bad governance in the country.
But Bello, in an interview with the State House correspondents told the bishops that only those who were no more getting stolen money to pay tithes were angry with Buhari.
“And of course, those who have looted the country dry and normally go to the church and mosque to pay tithe, are no longer doing so. Of course, these are the category of people that are angry,” the governor had stated.
Bishop Mathew Kukah has since described the comment by Bello as a tragedy of leadership in Nigeria. He said, “The statement of the governor is not worthy of my comment because I believe that the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria stands for something higher than that. I won’t even dignify him with a response.”
When prodded to speak further on the issue, Kukah added, “This Bello is a character that nobody heard anything from until he suddenly, accidentally found himself in power. What does he (Bello) know about what the bishops have said? So, I don’t even want to dignify him with any response. I don’t think it’s worth giving him a story. Frankly, people of his calibre do not deserve our response. It is also a measure of the kind of people who have strayed into power. I am not going to go into any details. It is a tragedy of what we call leadership now in Nigeria. People who have come with no antecedents; they just come out of the woodworks and occupy an office. And so, I won’t dignify him (Bello) with any response.”
In another reaction, the Archdiocese Emeritus, Catholic Archdiocese of Ibadan, Alaba Job, described the statement made the governor as disappointing and out of context. Job advised the Kogi governor to revisit the purpose of the meeting and what the President told the bishops and compare with his statement. Job stated, “The governor will not say it if he read what we said to President Buhari at the meeting in Abuja. We told Buhari the truth about what is happening in the country. We told him about hunger, lots of atrocities being committed in the nation, lots of killings here and there and he was happy that we spoke to him. He also told us what he is doing and what he plans to do more.
“I am sorry that the governor made that statement. Who are the people stealing for us? What he said is different from what we discussed with Buhari. Killings, kidnappings, and other forms of evil (practices) are around us. Boko Haram has, to some extent, been suppressed but we now have so many other atrocities. We did not discuss any issue about money to the church. It is a great pity if a governor made that statement. As far back as 1994, Catholic Church bishops constituted a prayer group that has been praying against corruption in Nigeria.
“The governor’s statement does not ‘belong’ to us, not to the Catholic Church bishops in Nigeria. He should read the statement issued at the meeting and compare it to his own statement. It is out of context.”
Also, CAN advised the governor to address the rot, which he had allegedly brought upon Kogi State. CAN urged Bello to focus on rescuing his state from the grip of kidnappers instead of trying to be the President’s errand boy. The media aide to CAN President, Pastor Bayo Oladeji, noted that Bello had the rights to express himself, but insisted that what the bishops told the President was the truth about the situation in the country. He added that the CAN leadership, led by Dr. Samson Ayokunle, had raised similar issues with Buhari during a visit in November last year, adding that what the President told the delegation was what he re-echoed during the Catholic Bishops’ visit.
Oladeji stressed that Nigerians had not experienced so much hardship like the prevailing one under the Buhari administration, adding that Bello should keep quiet if he had nothing sensible to say. He added, “If he (Bello) says some people were looking for free money, he should keep quiet if he has nothing to say. Under his watch, people are committing suicide and he has refused to pay workers. If he is the one that would be running to Abuja to defend the President, then something is wrong somewhere.”
“Go to his (Bello’s) state and see what is happening there; Okene is now the headquarters of kidnapping. If the welfare of his people is not his concern, he shouldn’t force the President to follow in his steps. If he wants to become the President’s errand boy, he should resign and relocate to Abuja,” he said.
Also, the National Director, Caritas Nigeria and Justice Development and Peace Commission, Rev. Fr. Evaristus Bassey, said Bello was a disgrace to the Not-too-Young-to-Run Campaign. The CN and JDPC are two agencies of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria. Bassey said, “Governor Yahaya Bello does not dignify a response. However, he is a disgrace to the Not-too-Young-to-Run Campaign. I believe Bello thinks that by freezing when President Buhari coughs, he will be spared from the wrath of God through the Kogi people who are dying each day because of unpaid salaries and misgovernance. Even if he escapes human judgment, he will not escape the eternal consequences unless he repents and be a true servant of the people.”
