Oyedepo calls Buhari’s govt worst in history as Christian elders fault president’s appointments

By Adetayo Opeyemi

Bishop Oyedepo, the Presiding Bishop of Living Faith Church Worldwide, has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s government as the worst in Nigerian history.

Oyedepo stated this in his Sunday sermon at the Faith Terbancle, Ota, Ogun State.

Drawing attention to the hate speech bill sponsored by Senator Sabi Abdullahi, he said the government was aiming to gag free speech which is a core tenet of any democratic society and at the same time, creating channel for those who disturb the peace of the country to be free.

Alluding to George Orwell’s Animal Farm, Oyedepo said “The government in this country is making a draconian law.’’

He went on to refer to say the government is one with no direction and prophesying that the days are numbered for the incumbent government.

Oyedepo’s comment comes about the same time Christian elders, under the aegis of the Christian Elders Forum of Northern States Northern Christian Elders Forum, called out the appointments made by Buhari since 2015.

The forum, in a statement issued in Kaduna on Sunday, said such appointments were indicative of the nepotism holding sway under Buhari’s administration, adding that they were designed to disadvantage northern Christians.

They urged the president to increase its dedication towards the release of Leah Sharibu, a Christian Dapchi schoolgirl who has been held hostage by Boko Haram for more than two years, for allegedly failing to renounce her faith.

“NOSCEF also wishes to state that it has not seen any attempt by the Federal Government to remedy the skewed pattern of appointments that have failed to reflect the religious and ethnic diversity of the nation,” the statement reads in part.

“Rather, we continue to witness the replacement of even the few appointees outside the nepotistic enclave by those already dominating. The appointments have been particularly unfair to the northern Christians.’’

In the same vein, the forum, which has Elder Ejoga Inalegwu as its chairman, praised the governor of Borno state, Prof. Babagana Zulum for his sense of leadership in dealing with the growing insecurity in the state.

They also appealed to northern governors to follow the follow the path of the South-West governors in establishing a regional security outfit in the light of Amotekun.