Solomon Dalung, the former Minister of Youths and Sports, has criticized Stephen Adegbite, a Methodist Bishop and the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission, for his public disapproval of Catholic Archbishop Emeritus John Cardinal Onaiyekan. Dalung expressed his views in a recent post on his official Facebook page.
The tension originated from remarks made by Adegbite regarding Cardinal Onaiyekan’s public critiques of President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Adegbite had previously suggested that while religious leaders are free to favor specific political candidates, they should refrain from disparaging opponents and maintain the confidentiality of private discussions held with the President during the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria.
Dalung rejected these claims, arguing that Adegbite is unfairly characterizing Catholic bishops as enemies of the state. He asserted that Catholic leadership holds a legitimate right to evaluate and criticize government policies. While the former minister acknowledged that Adegbite is entitled to support President Tinubu, he insisted that questioning the bishops’ integrity without presenting solid evidence is improper. Dalung concluded that if Adegbite disagrees with the bishops, he must present concrete facts to justify his stance rather than attacking their motives.
