The Sokoto Catholic Diocese Bishop, Matthew Hassan Kukah, was criticized by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for saying that President Muhammadu Buhari had broken his political promises from 2015.
In his Christmas sermon at St. Mary Catholic Church in Sokoto on Sunday, Kukah said that while Buhari would be leaving office in good health, Nigerians were suffering as a result of his inability to keep his promises to the nation.
Kukah listed nepotism as a key characteristic of Buhari’s administration.
The ruling party responded by claiming that the statement was ungodly coming from a priest and that Buhari deserved praise for the accomplishments he has built up throughout his term.
Speaking to Punch, APC Director of Publicity Bala Ibrahim advised Kukah to speak fairly and give credit to Buhari where credit is due.
Ibrahim said, “I hold him (Kukah) in high esteem and respect him because he is a senior brother to a friend.
“Secondly, he is a man of God. But I am sorry to say that sometimes his speeches are ungodly. Ungodly in the sense that he does not seem to be objective at times.
“If you are going to be objective or speak with fairness, you cannot but give credit to Buhari for the way and manner he handles this country.
“When we talk about healthcare, if Kukah is insinuating that Buhari has used public office or his position to access better healthcare, I think he has not been fair to him. All the medical attention the President has been getting has been abroad and at no cost to the government. He has been seeing the same set of doctors he was seeing in the last 40 years. This is not a new hospital he visits. It is the same facility and doctors he uses for years in London long before he became the military head of state.
“In the time when Chibok girls were taken, the government even refused to admit they were taken. That was how the lexicon ‘There is God’ came into our dictionary. They did not even admit that such a thing happened let alone acted to set them free. But this government came and within a short period sprang into action and some of these children were released even if it was in piecemeal. At least, we are still getting them.
“All the passengers on the Kaduna-Abuja train who were abducted had been freed without casualties. If you look at the speed and the rate of bombardment by the Air Force, you will agree with me that they are hitting these people hard so much that many of them are surrendering and giving up.
“You will not say this government is not doing well at securing and getting people freed from captivity. Gone are the days when Boko Haram attacked in a ruthless manner that they used to do, you don’t get to see that anymore because they have been decimated and no longer have the capacity for any spectacular attack anymore.
“You will not say this government is not doing well at securing and getting people freed from captivity. Gone are the days when Boko Haram attacked in a ruthless manner that they used to do, you don’t get to see that anymore because they have been decimated and no longer have the capacity for any spectacular attack anymore.
“So when a man of God speaks in an ungodly manner, I tend to feel uncomfortable. As I said earlier, he is not a man I will want to join issue with. I still respect him as a senior brother and hold him in high esteem. But I will want him every time he talks to do so in consultation with his conscience.”
