Sodiq Mojibola
Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, has advised the Bishop Emeritus of the Archdiocese of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan to desist from descending into political conflicts that may decide his congregation.
Reacting to the comments of the Archbishop, Keyamo stated that the issues surrounding the victory of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, are not new to the system.
He explained that the previous president-elects like Obasanjo, Jonathan, Yar’dua and Buhari were in similar situation.
The Archbishop had reportedly commented that the swearing in of Tinubu on May 29 would be an “anomaly”.
Keyamo, in a statement on Twitter, said, “My dear daddy, may I respectfully advise that going forward, you and your brethren may consider stepping back from the deep and murky waters of politics and desist from descending into the arena of political conflicts where your children in your congregations find themselves on different sides of political divides, so it would be unfair to them for you to openly take sides.
“The embarrassment to the Body of Christ is getting too much and no politician is worth dragging this dignified body into unnecessary political controversy. Is this too much to ask, Daddy?”
“Dear daddy Onaiyekan”, Keyamo continued, “you know we all respect you a lot, but your political comments are becoming unstatesmanlike.
“A statesman who doubles as a Man of God should strive to be fair to all. You didn’t say the same thing when Obasanjo, Yar’Adua, Jonathan and Buhari were all sworn in as Presidents when their cases were still before the courts.
Keyamo further accused that the bishop emeritus delibrately chose to be against the president elect as a result of his political interest for candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, which was openly displayed in the just concluded election.
He said, “You have chosen to single out this President- Elect @officialABAT this time around because the candidate you and your other religious brethren openly supported lost the election and you all feel humiliated and embarrassed.
“All issues raised against the victory of @officialABAT in court now (whether it is 25% votes in FCT or the fake drug issue, etc), are not different from issues raised against previous Presidents-elect because basically the complaints have always been that the declared victor did not win the election fair and square or was not qualified to contest the election.
“No disqualifying issue against a candidate can be greater than other disqualifying issues since a single issue can decide a case against a President-elect.
“So, why all the fuse now? It has always been our electoral template since 1999 for the declared winners to be sworn into office in order TO AVOID A VACUUM and not to foist an unconstitutional contraption on the system whilst the cases are in court.
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