While some of us pray, and look on in hope of seeing the rippling waves of discontent that has now characterized Nigeria to quickly settle down, the APC has foisted another unforeseen brouhaha on our sociopolitical space over the purported telephone conversation between Bishop Oyedepo and Peter Obi, which is perceived as unnecessary. It’s like a red herring. I see this move by the APC, and her surrogates as a distraction from the issue at hand, which is the legitimacy of the incoming government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Nigerians want the court proceedings to be aired publicly as quickly as possible. Vindicating the victory of Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the law courts should be their primary prerogative, and not eavesdropping into people’s conversation.
The highlight of the conversation is that Peter Obi requested for Bishop Oyedepo to help reach out to Christians in the southwest, and help solicit support in the middle belt (Kogi and Niger state to be precise). Two, Peter Obi’s use of the phrase, ‘religious war’. What the pro-APC group intends to achieve is simple. They want Peter Obi to be seen as one who is trying to stir up religious war in the country, having failed to unsuccessfully link the issue of an interim government to him. It’s also a subtle attempt to cast aspersion on the person of Bishop David Oyedepo, with the ultimate aim of silencing the members of the clergy, and the Church in general as touching the matter of governance.
Let me clear the air on a very important fact. Governance and politics are two different issues. Governance is about how a nation is being run, while politics deals with the process of the emergence of those leaders. I may not be involved in politics and be interested or, and involved in how leaders emerge by the ballot box and help create an awareness of the best candidate for governance having put all relevant indices in proper perspective. However, the Nigerian constitution permits the freedom of association. In this case, one has the right to align with any political party or association of his or her choice.
Bishop Oyedepo does not belong to any political party. It is his inalienable right to vote for a candidate of his choice, give a listening ear to any candidate that calls him, and wish him or her well if the need arises. Any wise person will know that the conversation was doctored. Something led to the use of the ‘religious war’ phrase by Peter Obi, they shouldn’t have cut off that part. This action shows the insincerity of the perpetrators whose aim is to sell a lie to unwary members of the Nigerian public in place of the truth. The truth is that the APC made it appear like a religious war when they decided to go for a Muslim-Muslim ticket. Christians from the north and every part of Nigeria decried their action. That was when the sword was drawn.
Since they have decided to use religion as a decisive factor in winning the election, it was also wise and fair for the Labour Party candidate to nullify that nefarious plan by reaching out to the Christian community, his immediate constituency; appealing to their sensibilities and sensitivities in times like this. So, what is wrong with Peter Obi asking for Bishop Oyedepo’s assistance in this regard? The APC used what it had to get what it wanted, Peter Obi, also toed the same line. What is good for the geese is also good for the gander. So, why make a storm out of a teacup, why the hue and cry?
From another school of thought, Bishop Oyedepo shouldn’t have consented to Peter Obi’s request. In the first instance, nothing is incriminating about Peter Obi’s request. Therefore, if it isn’t incriminating, Bishop oyedepo’s consent is also not incriminating. “But as a spiritual father, has he not taken sides already?” In life, you have to choose between two or several alternatives. Bishop Oyedepo made a choice that any reasonable individual will make especially when his religious freedom is being threatened, a situation, that the APC already created when it decided to go for a same-faith ticket despite the antagonism of the Christian community.
I believe that Bishop Oyedepo simply followed the principle of existentialism, and there is nothing wrong with that; something which every reasonable person will do under the same circumstance. You don’t expect me to support a man who killed my wife’s relatives in the name of being a father to all. I am first of all a father to some people before becoming everyone’s father. If the people over whom I originally earned the term fatherhood are gone, there is no basis or pedestal for my fatherhood in the larger community. If I become indifferent when I need to make a concrete choice, the same people that killed my wife’s relatives will soon come for my relatives, and later for me. This allegory should explain Bishop Oyedepo’s stance.
I love the ‘yes daddy’ refrain being overhyped by the APC people. It highlights the importance of fatherhood in the Christian faith. Who do you run to in times of crisis? If you have no spiritual father to turn to, then you’ll be drawn farther down into the chasm caused by crisis. It also highlights the power of followership which God graciously gave to Christian leaders all over the world, and this should instruct any political leader not to despise church leaders. Anyone who attempts to do so should be ready to face the music. Ironically, the APC has created a musical beat that they are afraid of dancing to.
Finally, we need to find out the moral and legal-rational behind digging up private conversations of private individuals or corporate bodies. Why is the National Communications Commission (NCC) silent on this? Is it because they are complicit in the matter? Where is the court injunction to tap into the private conversation of the two aforementioned personalities? What is the moral and legal rationale for placing the conversation into the public domain? Is it to stabilize or further destabilize the nation? Is it meant for escalation or de-escalation of an already overheated polity? Is section 37 of the Nigerian constitution still operational, or has it become irrelevant? Can it bring the so-called healing that the ruling party has been talking about?
How can we ascertain our safety as Nigerians in light of this odious development? Can we not enjoy our privacy anymore because of someone’s overambition? If the private conversation of private individuals like Peter Obi and Bishop Oyedepo can be monitored and placed in the public domain, then no one appears to be safe in the incoming regime. We can see the handwriting on the wall. What will happen to the freedom of speech, freedom of association, and freedom of the press? Nigerians should wake up before it’s too late!
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