16/09/2025
CHURCH AND STATE AS PARTNERS IN NATIONAL TRANSFORMATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
My Address delivered as Chairman of the Opening Ceremony of the Second Plenary Session of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, held at Obot Akara
Your Grace, Most Reverend Dr. Camillus Umoh, Bishop of Ikot Ekpene; Your Excellency, Archbishop Michael Francis Crotty, the Papal Nuncio to Nigeria; Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference; My Lords Spiritual, distinguished dignitaries of the Church, and fellow countrymen:
I come before you today not merely as the President of the Senate, but as a fellow pilgrim in our great journey of faith, and as a companion in the march of our nation—seeking the renewal of hope, the upliftment of our people, and the fulfilment of Nigeria’s destiny. I extend to you the greetings of the Senate and the Government of our beloved nation. But let me also make a confession: no Parliament, however mighty, can govern a people without their soul. And the soul of a nation is nurtured by the Church. Thus the Psalmist proclaims: ‘Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.’
It is in that spirit that pulpit and parliament, altar and assembly, stand this day not in rivalry, but in fellowship. To stand here is not a small honour; it is a solemn privilege. I am grateful to our Bishops for this wonderful opportunity, which is both symbolic and instructive. Symbolic, because it declares before God and man that faith and governance are not enemies but allies, marching together for the good of the people. Instructive, because it reminds us that in the building of nations, the voice of conscience must never be silent, and the hand of government must never be deaf to wisdom from the altar
You graciously gave me the liberty to choose my subject, and I have chosen one as timely as it is eternal: the sacred partnership of Church and State in the transformation of Nigeria, and in the upliftment of her people.
The relationship between altar and throne has long stirred the minds of men. Some have insisted that they must forever be adversaries, locked in endless conflict. Others, no less mistaken, have thought partnership meant domination—that one must swallow the other. But history and Scripture alike show a different path. When Church and State walk together in mutual respect, when they stand side by side as guardians of truth and justice, then the people flourish. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,” declares the Psalmist. And our Lord Himself, with the clarity of eternity, has spoken: “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.” There, my friends, is the compass of wisdom: distinction without division, partnership without compromise.
The annals of nations shine with examples. In Poland, the Catholic Church, under Cardinal Karol Wojtyła—later Pope John Paul II—stood shoulder to shoulder with the Solidarity movement, until tyranny collapsed and freedom rose, like a Phoenix, from its ashes. In Latin America, the Church, armed with her social doctrine, carried the burden of the poor when governments faltered—building schools where there were none, raising hospitals where illnesses flourished. In South Korea, the Catholic and Presbyterian voices together rang the bell of liberty, breaking the chains of dictatorship and setting a nation on the path to prosperity. Time and again, where the Church has dared to be the conscience of the State, renewal has come to nations.
Nor has the Nigeria Church been silent in her hour of testing. When military boots stamped upon the soil of our democracy, voices rose from the pulpit and the sanctuary. We remember Archbishop Gabriel Ganaka of Jos, who reminded us that the Church must ever be the conscience of society. ‘The Church cannot be silent in the face of injustice,’ he declared, ‘for silence in such times is itself a sin.’ In a season of fear, he gave us courage; in a season of tyranny, he gave us hope.
I recall with reverence the fearless Cardinal Anthony Okogie of Lagos, who, as President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, stood against the storm of tyranny and made all Christians proud. At a time when silence would have been easier, he raised his voice for democracy, for freedom, for dignity. The Church did not covet political influence; the Church wielded the sword of truth, and her moral authority became a lamp for the nation.
The Catholic tradition of social teaching is a gift not only to Christendom but to mankind. Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum declared the sacred rights of the worker. Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ calls us to steward the earth itself as our common home. These teachings insist—human dignity is sacred, the common good is supreme, the poor must be at the centre of development, and justice and peace are the twin pillars of progress. This is not politics. This is the Gospel and it should thrive in the market, in the farm, in the schoolroom, in the halls of power.
And so I say to Catholics, Christians and all people of faith across Nigeria: do not retreat, do not grow silent, do not imagine that governance belongs to others while faith belongs only to the sanctuary. No! Bring your faith into the marketplace. Bring it into the corridors of power. Bring your discipline into the professions. Bring your courage into the public service. Be like Daniel in Babylon—faithful in governance, undefiled in conscience. Be like Nehemiah, who rebuilt broken walls with one hand upon the trowel and the other upon the sword of prayer. Be like Moses, who went to Egypt to bring God’s people to the land of promise. This, my brothers and sisters, is the vocation of the faithful in every generation—to bear witness in season and out of season.
As President of the Senate, I pledge before you that we shall continue to stand with the Church in this sacred work. In the councils of government, we are your eyes and your ears. And let it be said with clarity: your voice is not ornamental, it is essential; your counsel is not optional, it is indispensable.
In the 10th Senate, we have sought to legislate not only with reason but with conscience. The foundation of our cordial relationship with the Executive is not convenience, but conscience — and the enduring interest of the common man. Through such collaboration, we have widened access to education through the Student Loan Act, lifting the hopes of our youth. We restrained tariff hikes, that the poor might not be crushed beneath burdens too heavy to bear. We passed a new minimum wage, affirming the dignity of labour and the rights of the worker. And when war drums sounded in Niger, we chose the harder road of peace over the easier path of conflict. These are not mere statutes, but living testimonies that parliament and pulpit, reason and faith, already walk hand in hand for the good of Nigeria. For as the prophet has declared: ‘What does the Lord require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God’ (Micah 6:8)
As a Catholic, I know your unyielding interest in education. Rest assured that the Tinubu Administration shall strengthen your schools that train not only the mind but also the soul. In healthcare, we shall work with your hospitals and clinics, which for decades have been the refuge of the sick and the poor. In justice and human rights, we shall uphold laws that defend the dignity of every Nigerian, regardless of tribe or creed. In youth empowerment, we shall join hands with faith-based institutions to train, to inspire, and to equip our young men and women to meet the challenges of tomorrow.
We are not perfect. We stumble. But we are resolved to legislate with equity, with justice, and with the fear of Almighty God.But let me also speak plainly, as truth compels me: the work of rebuilding Nigeria will not be accomplished in a day, nor in a year. Nations are not transformed by decrees alone, but by patience, by sacrifice, by the labour of many hands and the courage of many hearts.
Let me seize this opportunity to urge my compatriots to be be patient with your government as we lay again the foundations of this house. Do not despair when the winds blow strong or the scaffolding shakes. For a nation is like a mighty cathedral—it is not raised overnight, but stone by stone, prayer by prayer, hand by hand. “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles.” (Isaiah 40:31).
Let us therefore renew hope in the Nigerian enterprise. Let us believe again that our land can be great, that our children can inherit a future brighter than our present. Let us bind the wounds of division, banish the cynicism of despair, and walk together—Church and State, pulpit and parliament, faith and policy—towards the dawn.
My Lords, ladies and gentlemen: transformation is not the burden of one arm of society, nor the privilege of a select few. It is a covenant of partnership. As St. Paul declares: ‘We are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.’ Let us then build together. Let us rise together. Let us bring forth a Nigeria of justice, of peace, of human flourishing.
As Governor, I once observed that this blessed state had become the Gilgal of our nation — the place of covenant renewal — because of the stream of faith-based conventions that gathered here. Now that the mother of all Churches has brought its plenary session to this land, I pray that this convocation will become to us what Gilgal was to Israel: a memorial of God’s faithfulness, a turning of the page, and the dawn of a new chapter in our nation’s story.
God bless the Holy Catholic Church. God bless His Church. God bless our great citizens. God bless the Senate. And God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
