Onaiyekan: Presidential Aide Details What Transpired At Tinubu-Bishops Meeting

The Presidency on Saturday provided details of President Bola Tinubu’s recent meeting with members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, faulting comments made afterward by Cardinal John Onaiyekan and insisting that the President responded comprehensively to every concern raised during the private engagement.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, who made the revelations said Onaiyekan’s decision to publicly narrate his understanding of what transpired at the meeting amounted to an abuse of the privilege accorded to the clerics.

“There is something fundamentally inappropriate about Cardinal John Onaiyekan granting a television interview to offer his own account and interpretation of what transpired during the private meeting between the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria and President Bola Tinubu. It is, in my view, an abuse of clerical privilege,” Ajayi said.

He explained that the bishops had sought the audience with the President and used the opportunity to present what they considered the country’s economic, social and security challenges.

According to him, while the bishops acknowledged the impact of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), they were largely critical of other aspects of the administration’s performance.

“The bishops were notably acerbic in their submission, but the president listened to them patiently and responded,” he disclosed.

Ajayi said Tinubu addressed each issue raised during the meeting, including the bishops’ call for the return of mission schools, reminding them that education remains largely within the constitutional responsibility of state governments.

“On the bishops’ demand for the return of schools to their owners, the President was surprised that such an issue could be tabled before him, as it is a matter for the states to resolve. So, he asked the bishops to take the matter to the governors and reminded them he returned mission schools in Lagos State when he was governor,” he said.

The presidential aide maintained that Tinubu disputed the bishops’ assessment of the country’s condition, arguing that while challenges persist, significant progress has been made.

“He acknowledged that significant economic and security challenges remain. His point was that the country has emerged from ‘a dark tunnel’, that his administration has laid the foundations for recovery and that the next phase is to ensure the greatest number of Nigerians feels the gains,” Ajayi added.

He also defended the administration’s economic reforms, saying they had restored greater fiscal stability and enabled many state governments to meet salary and pension obligations more consistently.

“It is impossible to ignore the fiscal crisis he inherited and the measures taken to pull the country away from the edge of a financial cliff,” he said, adding that “countless civil servants and pensioners who, for years, endured unpaid salaries and pensions are now receiving them more regularly,” the Presidential aide pointed.

On security, Ajayi rejected the suggestion that the President was dismissive of concerns raised by the bishops.

“The President did not deny the seriousness of the security situation. Rather, he acknowledged the challenge while outlining the gains recorded by the Armed Forces and intelligence agencies across different theatres of operation,” he said.

He argued that, as Commander-in-Chief, Tinubu has access to intelligence and operational reports not available to the general public, making it legitimate for him to present a broader assessment of the security situation.

Ajayi also dismissed suggestions that the President depends solely on critics or religious leaders to understand the country’s realities.
“What truth does anyone really need to tell President Tinubu that he does not already know?” he asked.

Ajayi stressed that, the President reads an average of 10 newspapers daily, monitors television discussions and receives regular security, social and economic intelligence reports, in addition to maintaining extensive consultations with associates across the country.

“The suggestion that President Tinubu somehow needs only the Catholic Bishops to acquaint him with the truth is an overreach. They are an important constituency, but they are by no means the exclusive custodians of the national mood or the nation’s conscience,” he stated.

Ajayi concluded that while the bishops were entitled to express their concerns, the confidentiality of the meeting ought to have been respected.

“The Catholic Bishops discharged what they considered their moral obligation by presenting their concerns to the president. President Tinubu, for his part, accorded them respect by granting them an audience and responding to every issue they raised,” he said, emphasising that “reciprocity should have dictated that the confidentiality and dignity of that engagement be preserved. It was inappropriate for one of the participants to emerge almost immediately on national television to provide his own version of what was essentially a private conversation with the president.”