We Have No Intention Of Taking Over Government –Catholic Bishops

Catholic bishops in the country have stated that they have no intention whatsoever in taking over government in the country, their long-term stance on issues of national importance notwithstanding

Speaking under their apex body the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), they held instead that their criticism of the state of affairs in the country is borne out of concern for the sufferings of Nigerians in the midst of plenty,

The bishops lamented the situation in a communiqué issued at the end of their First Plenary Meeting, held from February 19 to 26, 2026, and signed by Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji of Owerri, outgoing CBCN President, and Bishop Donatus Ogun of Uromi, outgoing Secretary of the Conference.

“We have no intention of taking over government. If anything is driving us, it is purely the love of our nation, and we have what we consider like a prophetic role, namely to speak truth to power. We don’t speak carelessly, but we are not afraid to voice out the truth in clear terms.

Not to put down anyone, but to let people know this is what is facing us”, they stated.

According to them, “We continue to experience tragic events of senseless massacre, mass burials, endless tears, and grief.

“There are incidents of mass murders in different communities.
“Nigeria is richly blessed with abundant mineral resources. With good leadership, these resources would have been contributing significantly to our national economic growth and development.

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“In our country, the ownership of all mineral resources is vested in the Federal Government, which also regulates their exploration and exploitation.

“Yet, trillions of Naira are annually lost to bunkering and illegal mining owing to banditry, kidnapping and other organized crimes in parts of our country.

“We observe that a major cause of our problem as a nation is poor leadership and the wrong idea of politics.

Where politics is erroneously understood only as rigging of elections and stealing of other people’s mandate, leadership is unfortunately taken as the amassing of illicit gains or engaging in other fraudulent activities.

“We note that bad leadership in our nation has caused systemic damage showing up in a worsening economy, widespread and persistent insecurity, and extreme poverty, despite the blessing of rich human and natural resources.”