The cleric cited worsening economic conditions and insecurity, urging the government to deliver tangible results for Nigerians.
The senior pastor and general overseer of Omega Fire Ministries International, Johnson Suleman, has questioned President Bola Tinubu’s ambition to seek re-election amid worsening economic pressures, persistent insecurity, and other pressing national concerns.
The Nigerian televangelist spoke during a Sunday service in Auchi, Edo State, where he delivered a sermon titled “Power to Get Wealth”, a video of which went viral on Tuesday.
The 55-year-old cleric said the current realities facing the country should prompt deeper reflection on the justification for another term in office for Mr Tinubu.
Mr Suleman, who did not hold back in his assessment of the administration’s performance, said: “If people rig themselves into power, let it be clear that they rig. Not that you voted for them. Let the judgment be on them that they rig. For the first four years, somebody did nothing, and you want to vote for him again? The first term is when people really work. If you fail like this in the first term, what are you going to come back to do again? All this nonsense.
“Performance is the best form of campaign. If you don’t perform, that’s why you are destroying the opposition because you fail. Is it a spell that you can’t talk? Are these good? Is the country good? The dollar rose from N460 to N1,500. See fuel. What do you want to come back and do? What are you coming back to do? I have followed the system. You see some of us now. They are going to the news house to analyse what we are saying.”
The cleric further clarified that his criticism was not directed specifically at the former Lagos State governor’s administration, noting that he had also spoken out during the tenure of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He added that when he raised concerns about perceived wrongdoings under Mr Jonathan’s government, some officials within the administration applauded his comments.
“These same people. When the Chibok girls were kidnapped, and I was speaking about Jonathan, you failed. They were clapping for me. Because they were attacking everyone just to lay hold of power. Performance is the best form of campaign. That’s the truth. You failed a class. You want to come back again? If you fail, go. Most of you are not in politics.
“Get involved. Again, how can you get involved when people have now occupied your space? You can’t be the local government chairman unless you’re in a clique. Local government chairman, chairman of the local people. You can’t be there unless you’re in a clique. They will pick you. It’s not by election. It’s by selection. They will pick you. So everything is corrupted”, said Mr Suleman.
Furthermore, the alumnus of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) noted that Mr Tinubu’s administration could not point to a single problem it successfully resolved for Nigerians.
He argued that while expectations were not that he should fix every pressing challenge at once, he should at least be able to demonstrate the resolution of one key issue.
He said, “Get one thing right. Nigerians are not asking for too much. If you can’t get power, give us security. If you can’t provide security, let us buy things cheaply. Just do one thing right. Light is zero. You even have solar in the Villa (Aso Rock). Go around the world as I do. I was talking to my friend; his battery was going down to 7 per cent. I said, ‘Charge your phone.’ He said, ‘When the battery goes out, I’ll charge it.’
“I suddenly remembered. Why was I telling him to charge his phone? Because I thought they would soon take light. He said, ‘When my phone is off, I will charge it.’ I said, ‘You wait for your phone to go off?’ He said, ‘If it goes off, I’ll charge it then.’ I said, ‘Hey.’ As I’m talking to you now, if you enter a supermarket anywhere, you’ll see a charging space. Madam, I beg. Glory to God.”
More so, Mr Suleman stated that wherever the Mr Tinubu administration performed well, he acknowledged and commended it.
He added that he was not a politician and did not belong to any political party, stressing that he spoke frankly and called things as he saw them.
“One December, they subsidised transportation. I said, ‘This is good.’ If it’s good, I will talk. If it’s bad, I will talk. I’m not at a party. I will say it. If you do well, I’m not an average Nigerian who, once they hate you, there’s nothing good you do. They don’t like you. You can’t be good in their eyes. If you do well, I will come out and commend you. When the Dollar dropped, and the Naira came up, I stood on this pulpit. I commended them.
“I said, now they are doing well. Also, when people are being kidnapped, I will come here. I will talk. When people are hungry, I will speak. It’s not biased. It’s so that you can step up. So far, you have failed. So far. It’s not biased. Everybody wants to lead. You are asking yourself, where are we going? I’m not standing anywhere. I’m standing on what is right.”
The cleric expressed optimism that God would transform the country for the better, adding that those currently alive would live to witness the Nigeria of their dreams.
“We will be alive, and at 1am, people will travel, and nobody will hurt them. God is not just about prayer. God will raise people somehow who will access power and show one act of selflessness.”
Mr Suleman further stated that it is not out of pleasure that many people living abroad leave their home country.
He said they are not necessarily seeking greater wealth, but rather a better quality of life and personal security.
According to him, what is currently happening in Nigeria reflects a system that has broken down.
“There are people abroad today who are not abroad because they want too much wealth. It’s because they want safety. That’s why somebody can leave as a medical doctor and become a taxi driver abroad. You are laughing at him, but he is in a safe atmosphere.
He wants to be able to go out without worrying about being kidnapped. Today, to travel in Nigeria, you have to pray and believe in God for a safe journey. Is that the country?”
“So, we have to be very careful. Don’t mock them when they are abroad. How can somebody leave this place and go there? He is safe. I interact with people as I travel.
They tell me, ‘See, Apostle, I don’t like this place I am in. I want to go back home. But I am safe here.’ I don’t want too much. I want to be able to go to the farm and come back safely, but that is not what we have now,” said Mr Suleman.
