By Palang Paul
Chairman of the Northern Christian Association, Rev. John Joseph Hayab, says President Bola Tinubu has been misled about Catholic bishops’ concerns over Nigeria’s challenges.
Hayab made the remarks on Tuesday 4th August 2026 during an interview on Trust TV’s Day Break programme, while defending the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).
The northern Christian leader said the bishops’ criticism of the Tinubu administration reflected the realities confronting ordinary Nigerians rather than a partisan or denominational position.
He identified hunger, insecurity, economic hardship, the declining value of the naira and growing concerns over Nigeria’s political direction as issues that could not simply be dismissed.
According to Hayab, the bishops were merely conveying concerns they had received from Nigerians who expected religious leaders to speak about the difficulties affecting their communities.
He said the clerics had a moral responsibility to draw the President’s attention to the problems and encourage the government to take corrective measures where necessary.
Hayab criticised the response from the presidency, arguing that Tinubu should have acknowledged the concerns and invited further information that could help his administration identify gaps.
He questioned the quality of advice reaching the President, saying those responsible for advising him were doing him a disservice if they encouraged him to dismiss concerns raised by religious leaders.
Hayab said the bishops were not seeking government contracts, political appointments or personal benefits but were speaking out of genuine concern for the country.
He consequently suggested that the President may have been “caged, misinformed or terribly misled” by individuals around him and may therefore not have a full understanding of the hardship being experienced by Nigerians.
The NCA chairman also rejected attempts to portray the matter as a disagreement between the Federal Government and the Catholic Church.
He stressed that Christian leaders across denominations command respect because of their spiritual responsibilities and commitment to preaching Christ, rather than because of the particular churches or denominations they represent.
Hayab further argued that recognising achievements recorded by the Tinubu administration should not prevent Nigerians from demanding solutions to the problems affecting their daily lives.
He said improvements in areas such as foreign reserves, infrastructure and other economic indicators would have limited meaning if ordinary citizens continued to struggle with hunger, insecurity and other hardships.
“No one is saying this government has done nothing,” Hayab said, stressing that the more important question was whether ordinary Nigerians were actually feeling the impact of the government’s achievements.
He maintained that the concerns raised by the Catholic bishops should therefore be treated as a call for government to listen, assess the situation and take action to address the difficulties confronting citizens.
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