Catholic Bishop of the Sokoto Archdiocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, has told his critics to desist from twisting his statement to suggest that he was advocating for a coup.
Bishop Kukah had in Christmas day message, decried nepotism of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s government, saying it was a self-defeating politics. He also said the level of nepotism in the Buhari’s government could have led to coup or war if a non-northern Muslim were at the helm of affairs.
But that statement has been interpreted to mean a call for coup, chief among its proponent is the minister of information, Lai Mohammed.
But Bishop Kukah urged Nigerians to ignore the lie against him, and focused on the message.
He made the remark while speaking with journalists in Sokoto on December 29.
“The reactions are a reflection of every citizen that make up Nigeria. It is sad that when you drop something in Nigeria, everybody goes back to their enclave and abandons the larger picture. I am someone who never takes offence to what people say about me.
“What I said was my opinion based on evidence and what has happened in Nigeria, and if you looked into the records, there is evidence that justifies that statement, and if anyone thinks I am wrong, they should come out with a superior position.”
He said it was unfair to impute a call for coup in his statement, saying he did not advocate such.
He said those who are asking him to drop his cassock and join the political fray, he said if he wanted to join politics, he would have done so during the time of the late Aminu Kano and not now.
“I have no plan and will never play partisan politics for any reason. Those who link my message to partisan politics are only playing to the gallery.”
He argued that his views on governance and politics would not make him a politician, saying: “Take, for instance, brilliant Nigerian youths making comments about Chelsea or Arsenal and have never been to England, does that make them players of such club sides?
“Whatever I said can please or displease anyone, but that is my own. I have no problem with Muslims, Christians, or any other religion but what I don’t like is when someone is using a religious issue to play politics, it is wrong.”