The Presidency has slammed the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Mathew Kukah, over his comments on President Muhammadu Buhari.
Recall that the Bishop in his Christmas message on Sunday had stated that President Buhari was leaving Nigeria far more vulnerable than when he came and has failed to fulfill his electoral promises.
Kukah also accused the President of nepotism, failing in tackling insecurity and failing to fight corruption despite hefty promises made to Nigerians seven and half years ago.
Reacting in a lengthy article on Thursday night, Presidential Spokesman, Femi Adesina, said Kukah is suffering from amnesia to have forgotten the state of the nation before the President came to power in 2015.
In the article titled ‘KUKAH DON’T COOK ME NONSENSE’, Adesina said the cleric has been accused many times of being a supporter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), hence his constant criticism of the Buhari government.
The Presidential spokesman argued that his principal has stabilized Nigeria, fought corruption, and never breached any constitution since assuming power.
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He wrote: “Under the camouflage of ‘speaking truth to power,’ it has become a regular thing for the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, to take potshots at President Muhammadu Buhari, and the governing All Progressives Congress (APC).
“When I saw the media report of his Christmas homily for 2022, I observed that it was in two distinct directions. The larger percentage took it from the negative: ‘Kukah blasts Buhari again; accuses him of failing to fight corruption, nepotism, and making Nigeria vulnerable.’
“And there was the other perspective, which was positive but less popular and commonplace: ‘Kukah commends Buhari on infrastructural development.’ It emanated from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). On reading the varying reports, I went searching for the full text of the homily, which I, fortunately, got online. I read it. Not as bilious and hateful as previous ones, but only laced with some inexactitude, which should be corrected for the sake of posterity.
“This piece is, therefore, not an excoriation or flagellation of Kukah, but just a setting straight of the records. Kukah the cook came with a meal that didn’t quite satisfy the palate. Too little or too much salt? Too little or too much pepper? Over-spiced or under-spiced? Overdone or underdone? But something was not quite right with the cooking, and that was responsible for the negative media reportage.
“Recall that the Bishop was particularly acerbic and virulent in his Christmas homily last year. And those of us that speak for the President did not suffer the poor cook gladly. My colleague, Mallam Garba Shehu, and I, as laymen, did the needful and pointed out the holes in the homily. The Bishop went on a shooting spree, opening fire at us on TV and in newspapers.
“He even challenged us to duels, employing language which I said an altar boy should not use, not to talk of a 70-year-old Bishop. But we had had our say, so we ignored him after the first fusillades. This year’s homily, on reading the full text, was less toxic. But this was the portion the media feasted on.
