The National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Bishop Wale Oke, and the Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olabode George, yesterday threw their weight behind the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), declaring that any attack on Catholic bishops amounts to an attack on the entire Body of Christ.

Oke, who spoke while ministering at the auditorium of his Sword of the Spirit Ministries in Ibadan yesterday, endorsed remarks made by Onaiyekan during the recent visit of the Catholic bishops to President Bola Tinubu, in which the bishops told the President that “Nigeria is bleeding.”

“Are we not bleeding? Are we not bleeding in Benue? Are we not bleeding in Southern Kaduna? Are we not bleeding in Gwoza, in Borno State? Are we not bleeding in Kwara? Are we not bleeding in Oyo State?” Oke queried, reiterating the Cardinal’s words.

The PFN President, however, challenged the government’s response to the bishops, saying that speaking truth to power should not be interpreted as a political act but as a moral responsibility.

He also condemned what he described as the government’s silence in the face of escalating violence against Christians, citing killings in Plateau, Southern Kaduna, Benue and Taraba states, as well as recent incursions into Oyo, Kwara and Edo states by violent groups linked to Islamic extremism.

On his part, George described Cardinal John Onaiyekan as the “Desmond Tutu of Nigeria,” comparing the Catholic cleric to the late South African Anglican Archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner, renowned for his opposition to apartheid and injustice.

George, the Atona Oodua of Yorubaland, also urged Onaiyekan not to be distracted by the barrage of criticism directed at him by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and some government officials over his comments on the state of the nation.

In a statement, yesterday, George said Onaiyekan should draw inspiration from the challenges Tutu faced while speaking against injustice and oppression in South Africa.

He said genuine Nigerian clerics and Christians would continue to speak truth to power regardless of intimidation or criticism.

He maintained that Onaiyekan’s comments should not be interpreted as partisan politics, saying that the cleric was expressing concerns about issues affecting Nigerians irrespective of their religious or political affiliations.

George also drew a parallel between the criticism of Onaiyekan and the Biblical account of the trial of Jesus Christ when the crowd called for the release of Barabbas and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

The former PDP deputy national chairman, therefore, urged the Cardinal to remain steadfast and continue speaking openly about the challenges facing the country.