Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has dismissed claims that President Bola Tinubu insulted the Catholic Church during his recent engagement with members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), insisting that the President enjoys a strong relationship with the Church.
The senator representing Abia North made the remarks on Wednesday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he reacted to criticism by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi, who accused Tinubu of disrespecting the Catholic bishops.
Rejecting the allegation, Kalu maintained that the President neither insulted the bishops nor regarded the Church as an adversary.
“Tinubu did not insult the Catholic Church. For me, Tinubu is not an enemy to the Catholic bishops; he’s one of their best friends, and I don’t feel insulted. Tinubu in no means insulted the Catholic bishops. I didn’t see it,” Kalu said.
He noted that engagements between Nigerian presidents and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference are a long-standing tradition and form part of the Church’s role as the moral conscience of society.
“This is not the first time that the Catholic Church is going to President Tinubu. In every country—from DRC to Angola, to South Africa, and anywhere—the Catholic Church and other churches are always the conscience of the country.
“I do not see anything wrong in what the Catholic bishops said. Those discussions were made by Archbishop Danagoro of Kaduna State, the current President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, and not even Onaiyekan.”
Kalu explained that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference has, since the military era, consistently held annual meetings where it reviews national issues and makes its position known to the government.
“Since the military rule, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference holds its conference every year where they talk and issue a statement about the state of the nation.”
The former Abia State governor further argued that President Tinubu has always maintained an open-door policy toward the Church and values its counsel.
“President Tinubu has a very good relationship with the Catholic Church. Anytime they have asked for an audience, he has given it to them because any president dodging Catholic bishops is dodging himself, because what politicians cannot tell the president, the Catholic bishops will say it.”
Kalu’s comments come amid growing political debate over the recent meeting between President Tinubu and the Catholic bishops, following Amaechi’s claim that the President’s response to the clerics amounted to an insult.
