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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu for failing to reassure Nigerians over the credibility of the 2027 general election after concerns raised by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).
Speaking on Tuesday’s edition of Politics Today on Channels Television, the former Minister of Transportation said the President should have used the meeting with the bishops to strengthen public confidence in the electoral process.
Amaechi said Tinubu ought to have assured all political parties that the next general election would be conducted on a level playing field.
“When the president has said to you all is fair in politics when the Catholic Church is crying about the possibility of having an election that may not be fair, what the President needs to do is to reassure the country, APC, PDP and ADC will slug it out in an even field, it will be a free and fair election, let the best team win,” he said.
The Catholic bishops had, during a meeting with the President last week, urged the Federal Government to guarantee credible elections and strengthen democratic institutions ahead of the 2027 polls.
Their concerns followed allegations by opposition parties that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other state institutions were being used to intimidate political opponents.
President Tinubu, however, dismissed the allegations, insisting that INEC remained neutral and was not being deployed against opposition parties.
The meeting later sparked controversy after former Archbishop of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, revealed that the bishops told the President Nigerians were facing severe economic hardship and that the country was “bleeding.”
The Presidency responded through presidential spokesman Daniel Bwala, who accused the Cardinal of making political remarks.
Amaechi defended Onaiyekan, insisting the cleric was not aligned with any political party but was genuinely concerned about poverty, corruption and the welfare of Nigerians.
“He supports nobody. I see Cardinal Onaiyekan regularly; I worship in his private chapel. Cardinal Onaiyekan himself supports nobody. I have had several conversations with him. The only thing that pains him is the level of indiscretion and poverty in the country and corruption. He worries about that,” he said.
The former Rivers State governor also accused the Presidency of showing disrespect towards the Catholic Church and the Christian faith.
He urged the Federal Government to stop attacking church leaders and instead focus on addressing the concerns they raised about governance, hardship and democratic accountability.
