PFN urges Tinubu to reject anti-preaching bill

Body says proposed law is unnecessary, targeted at Christians

By Olayinka Ajayi

LAGOS — The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has urged President Bola Tinubu not to assent to the anti-preaching and hawking bill currently before the National Assembly, describing it as unnecessary and unrelated to the country’s pressing challenges.

The Christian body said the proposed legislation was not among the urgent issues requiring government attention, insisting that Nigeria’s major problems bordered on insecurity, hunger and economic hardship.

Speaking with journalists in Lagos after the meeting of its National Executive Council, PFN National Secretary, Bishop David Bakare, described the bill as a needless measure targeted at Christians.

Bakare said Nigeria’s challenge was not a lack of laws but poor enforcement of existing ones.

“Many laws already exist in Nigeria which, if properly enforced, can bring sanity to different aspects of our national life. Our concern is that this law is not the urgent need of Nigerians at this time,” he said.

He argued that the country had more critical issues demanding attention, including insecurity and hardship, adding that the proposed legislation would not provide solutions to the challenges facing citizens.

The PFN secretary questioned the rationale behind classifying preaching in commercial vehicles as a traffic offence, saying legislators should have consulted more widely before considering such a measure.

“We cannot understand how this has become a traffic offence in any form. There are other issues that can be considered traffic offences in Nigeria that have not been addressed,” he said.

Bakare also raised concerns over the legislative process surrounding the bill, saying the organisation was unaware of its progress in the House of Representatives after its passage by the Senate.

He warned that religious matters required careful handling in Nigeria because of their sensitivity, stressing that the bill could create unnecessary tension between religious groups and the government.

“Christians in Nigeria consider that law as being against the church. It is deliberately organised to stir up the church against the state,” he said.

He appealed to President Tinubu to withhold assent and return the bill for wider public consultation involving relevant stakeholders.

“Let the public debate it. Invite the relevant people who are directly affected by such laws to come and discuss it,” Bakare added.

The PFN maintained that the proposed law did not address the country’s core challenges and should not be prioritised at this time.

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