As Tunde Bakare accuses president of playing God, urges humility in governance
…Rededicate yourselves to selfless service, PDP tasks leaders
In a searing Easter message delivered on Holy Saturday, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto issued a clarion call to President Bola Tinubu, urging him to rescue Nigeria from the “cross of evil” that has plunged the nation into unprecedented suffering.
Drawing on the metaphor of Christ’s crucifixion, Bishop Kukah painted a grim picture of a country teetering on the brink, ravaged by insecurity, hunger, and despair, while imploring the President to act with urgency to restore hope.
In his message, titled ‘A Reflection for Easter 2025,’ Bishop Kukah described Nigeria as a “national morgue,” where “a dark pall of death hangs languidly from north to south.”
He highlighted the daily kidnappings, brutal killings, and inhuman conditions endured by citizens, declaring that the nation’s suffering has reached a breaking point.
“Mr. President, Nigeria is becoming a huge national morgue,” he said, emphasizing that the culture of brutality and savagery has pushed Nigeria “outside the purview of human civilization.”
Acknowledging that President Tinubu did not create the crises, Bishop Kukah stressed that Nigerians have been “dangling and bleeding on this cross of pain” for too long.
He called for renewed hope, invoking Christian teachings and Pope Francis’ declaration of 2025 as the Year of Hope. “Uncertainty about the future gives rise to conflicting feelings,” he quoted the Pope, noting that cynicism and discouragement have taken root amid relentless violence by “marauders, murderers, savages, and ravenous predators.”
Uncertainty about the future gives rise to conflicting feelings
The Bishop addressed specific national challenges, including food insecurity exacerbated by the removal of fuel subsidies—a decision he supported but warned has left citizens grappling with hunger and desolation. He criticized palliative distribution as a affront to human dignity and urged the President to make food security a fundamental right.
“Farming has become one of the most hazardous preoccupations in our country,” he said, calling for decisive action to protect farmers and ensure access to food.
On insecurity, Bishop Kukah revealed a chilling historical context, noting that public officials had previously admitted to importing killers to destabilize a past government.
This “cancer of insecurity” has now metastasized, with bandits embedded in every sphere of life, undermining the nation’s foundation. “Kidnapping is now a dog whistle for undermining the very structure of our country,” he warned, questioning whether the persistence of insecurity reflects a lack of capacity or complicity at the highest levels.
“Are Nigerians lambs being sacrificed to an unknown god?” he asked pointedly.
Bishop Kukah’s message was not without hope. He reminded Christians of the resurrection’s promise, urging them to remain the “light of the world” and resist the darkness engulfing Nigeria.
He called for collective commitment to rebuild a society aligned with divine principles, expressing confidence that most Nigerians desire peace. However, he cautioned that unchecked insecurity could ignite a “toxic mix of violence” that could spiral out of control.
The Easter message concluded with a direct appeal to President Tinubu: “Step up, get to the finishing line, and bring us down from this cross of shame.” Bishop Kukah wished the President and all Nigerians a blessed Easter, urging unity in the face of adversity.
As Nigeria grapples with its myriad challenges, Bishop Kukah’s poignant words resonate as both a lament and a rallying cry, challenging the government and citizens alike to confront the nation’s crises with courage and hope.
Meanwhile, The Serving Overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church (CGCC), Pastor Tunde Bakare has urged President Bola Tinubu to adopt a more humble approach to governance, warning that he should stop playing God.
Delivering a state of the nation broadcast on Sunday at the church’s auditorium in Ikeja, Lagos, Bakare cautioned the President against “playing God”.
“Stop playing God,” Bakare said bluntly, emphasizing that while he disagrees with Tinubu, he does not wish for him to fail.
“The current administration is steering the polity adrift. It is time for this government to embrace humility.”
Bakare clarified that his address was not meant to condemn, but to guide the leadership toward a better path.
He lamented that the legislature, a vital pillar of democracy, is crumbling under the President’s leadership.
Bakare also criticised the National Assembly for suspending Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, arguing that her suspension was a response to her call for accountability.
He urged Senate President Godswill Akpabio to explain the action and uphold principles of transparency.
However, The Peoples Democratic Party has felicitated with Nigerians on the occasion of Easter, the Christian celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
In a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, the PDP encouraged Nigerians to use the Easter season to renew their hope in God’s unwavering love and His divine intervention in the nation’s and humanity’s affairs.
The party stated, “The PDP charges Nigerians to use the import of the Easter, which signifies the ultimate triumph of God’s saving grace over adverse circumstances to reawaken their determination and hope for the much-desired national rebirth as solution for the quagmires of hardship, insecurity and uncertainty pervading the nation under the anti-people All Progressives Congress administration.
“The coming of Easter must also redirect us as a nation to the imperatives of the virtues of forgiveness, forbearance, mutual respect, obedience to the Rule of Law and love for one another without regard to sectional, tribal, religious or political considerations, as this is the only way our nation can survive this perilous time.
“Our party charges all leaders at all levels, sectors and spheres to use the occasion for deeper introspection and rededicate themselves to a life of selfless service and pursuit of the good of the people as exemplified in the life, teachings, sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection ofJesus Christ to bring redemption to mankind.
“Against this backdrop, the PDP restates its demand on the APC-led Federal Government to rescind all its anti-people and life-discounting policies, address the ravaging insecurity, hunger and economic hardship in the country.”
