The cardinal and former Archbishop of Abuja, John Onaiyekan, has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of being determined to retain power “by all means,” warning that such an approach could undermine Nigeria’s democracy.
Speaking on Friday during Prime Time on Arise Television, Onaiyekan said the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) raised concerns about the conduct of future elections during its recent meeting with President Tinubu.
“We are worried about the fact that we see clearly that our government is bent on winning by all means,” the cardinal said.
“Unfortunately, they have a lot of means at their disposal to win. Even if we had a free and fair election, the votes of the people may not count.”
Onaiyekan warned that elections that are not free and fair would create “difficulties” for the country, stressing the need to protect the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process.
The cardinal also said the bishops used the meeting with the president to present what they described as the realities facing the country, adding that those around Tinubu were giving him an inaccurate picture of the nation’s condition.
“And that is one of the things that worries us, that there are so many people hanging around Mr President giving a rosy picture of what the country is, which it is not,” he said.
His remarks come days after the Catholic bishops met President Tinubu at the State House in Abuja, where the president defended his administration’s performance, insisting that the economy is stabilising and that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) remains neutral.
