The President General of the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), Archbishop Leonard Bouwe Kawas, has said he personally funded his participation in Mr. Peter Obi’s presidential campaign, paying the transportation of six clergymen and his own hotel bills, and that he never received a kobo from the candidate throughout the period.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/2026-Summer-IDRI-Masterclass.jpg")
Speaking in a television interview alongside the conference’s Secretary General, Archbishop Chianson, the cleric offered the account as his answer to critics who have described the body’s recent endorsement of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term as politically purchased.
“He Never Asked Me How I Came, Or Which Hotel I Slept In”
“I supported Peter Obi at the initial stage of his presidential ambition and went with him everywhere in Nigeria,” Kawas said. “And he never gave me one dollar, one naira. Neither did he ever ask me one day how did I come to the campaign. He will just see me at the campaign.”
He continued: “I will pay the transportation of six clergymen. We will come there and support him. He never asked me how did I come, where, which hotel did I sleep. Yet I did it and nobody called me fake. We were on television everywhere.”
His conclusion was put as a question to his critics: “Is it now because I have prayed and God has led me that it is Tinubu, that I suddenly now become fake?”
The Endorsement
The controversy arises from the endorsement of President Tinubu for re-election in 2027 by the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, announced by Kawas during the body’s Senate held in Abuja.
The conference said its decision rests on its assessment of the administration’s record, and in particular on its position that the President has not practised religious nepotism in his appointments notwithstanding the Muslim Muslim ticket on which he contested in 2023 and on which he is expected to seek re-election.
The endorsement drew immediate criticism from the leader of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, who said in a statement signed by his media aide that the bishops acted out of hunger for appointments and a desire for proximity to power rather than on any divine instruction. He described the endorsement as fake and cautioned the President against taking it to heart.
“There Is Nothing Like Hunger Around Us”
Responding to that charge, the Secretary General was pointed.
“I’m seriously disappointed at Primate Ayodele, because I thought he should have known better,” Archbishop Chianson said. “Now, hunger. The President General here, he’s an American citizen. The President General here, his children school in the United States of America, in very good schools. He pays their school fees in dollars, not from government’s money and not from any political patronage kind of money.”
“Come to our headquarters. When you come to our headquarters, then you would know that there is nothing like hunger around us.”
He added a disclosure about his own means: “Primate Ayodele, I need to inform you that I own diamond and gold mines in Liberia, and you can check this. So there’s no way there’s hunger in this.”
“We Have Our Scorecards”
The Secretary General said the endorsement was the product of an internal assessment rather than an arrangement.
“The reason why we endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is because we have our scorecards. And based on our scorecards, we were able to communicate with ourselves. We know that we have to provide leadership for our people. We know that we need to give direction. At this time in the nation, in times like this, after we’ve prayed together, we need to speak what the Lord is saying.”
On the economy, he said: “If you’re looking at it economically, Nigeria has been doing a lot better, especially in 2026 under his watch. Our GDP has been growing. Now unemployment rate has dropped as well.”
Challenged that unemployment is not falling at the rate Nigerians expected, he did not dispute the point but maintained the direction of travel: “Yes, but it is dropping. It is dropping anyway.”
He said the President had also steadied the national mood: “He has managed to at least calm the nerves of Nigerians. He’s managing our diversity very well. Unlike the previous government, our diversity was badly mismanaged. He has also restored back our hopes, especially those of us from the Christian community, based on his political appointments with no discrimination at all.”
The Appointments Cited
Asked how the conference arrived at that conclusion, and whether it had examined the cabinet list, the Secretary General named the offices on which the assessment rested.
“Number one, his appointment of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Dr. George Akume. That was a turning point for us. The moment that appointment was done, then we began to say, oh, there’s something good in this government for us.”
He listed further offices: “Then we had the FCT Minister, who’s also a Christian. Then we also have the Minister of Aviation, who is also Christian. And then we also have Minister of Water Resources, Christian. Minister of Works and Housing, Christian. Now the Governor of Central Bank is also Christian. Currently, Minister of Finance, Christian. Minister of Foreign Affairs, currently Christian. Minister of Defence is also Christian right now.”
“So we looked at these major ministries and we discovered that, unlike the previous administration where we had one ethnic group dominating these sensitive appointments, now we have President Tinubu evening it up.”
Put to him that the President also has a significant number of appointees from his own region in key positions, the panel moved to the charge of fake bishops.
“I Have Been A Bishop For 25 Years”
Responding to those who call the group fake bishops and accuse it of currying favour, Kawas set out his record.
“For those who say we are fake bishops, I didn’t just become a bishop today. I’ve been a bishop for 25 years. I’ve been an archbishop now for 13, for 14 years. And my archbishopric is internationally recognised, because I live in Washington DC.”
He said his involvement in Nigerian politics long predates the present administration, beginning in the era of the elder Yar’Adua, whom he described as a political godfather for those in the northeast then working under Atiku Abubakar.
“I came up with a banner organisation known as Atikuism that was trending all over the nation,” he said, recalling that a woman who saw him speak at a forum took him to Atiku, which gave birth to the idea he coined.
On the Obasanjo era, he said: “As soon as he came out of prison, it was Reverend Professor Yusufu Obaje that came and recruited me as prayer leader, to begin to pray for the actualisation. And I travelled around this country 2:00 a.m. in the night, myself and John Dara and others. We were around this country campaigning from church to church, and nobody called me a fake bishop.”
He said he later campaigned for the late Reverend Jolly Nyame, “and he became governor of my state, and he appointed me chairman, Taraba State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, and nobody called me fake.”
“I Was The Only Bishop In Goodluck Jonathan’s Presidential Campaign Council”
The cleric said his support for former President Goodluck Jonathan began at the state level.
“I started supporting Goodluck Jonathan as deputy governor of Bayelsa State, and I was one of the people that prophesied that I see him in Abuja. And he came to Abuja and he became vice president, and then president from the doctrine of necessity, and then he won the election.”
“I was in his presidential campaign council. I was the only bishop in Goodluck Jonathan’s presidential campaign council, and I took campaign everywhere. Nobody called me fake.”
“He Was The One That Handed Me My Senate Ticket”
Asked whether he had not crossed into politics himself, having contested for the Senate twice, Kawas confirmed it and named the President as his political benefactor.
“One of the reasons I like President Tinubu is that he was my leader in ACN. He was the one that handed me the ticket to go and run for Senate. He was the one that, himself and Boss Mustapha, handed me my Senate ticket, when I defeated seven people at the primaries in Jalingo, and they handed me my ticket to contest for the Taraba Central Senatorial District.”
He added: “I’m not just starting today, and I’ve held political appointments four times, twice at the state level, four times at the federal level. So I am not begging for political appointment.”
Asked whether that did not make him a politician, and whether there was not a problem with that, he accepted the description in part and defended it on ministerial grounds: “In a way, yes. Because I believe in helping the poor, and there are only two ways that you can easily be useful and helpful to people. One is to be a pastor as you have been called by God, and the other one is through political office.”
“The First Bishop In The Bible Was A Charismatic”
On the accusation that the conference is mimicking the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, with which it shares an acronym, and that it was assembled by the administration to counter the Catholic bishops after their meeting with the President at the Villa, the Secretary General rejected the premise.
“For information, the first bishop in the Bible was a Pentecostal. He was a charismatic. Peter was a charismatic. He spoke in tongues. He believed in the move of the Holy Ghost. That was the first bishop. So that’s where we have our roots.”
“Now we are not mimicking them. They have churches. We have churches. What we are called to do, they may never be able to do it. Those we are called to reach, they may never be able to reach them. Their own system, their own kind of process of administering the religious sacraments may not be able to achieve the result that ours achieves. So we are not mimicking them in any way. They are bishops, we are also bishops.”
Origins And Size Of The Conference
Kawas said the conference was established in 2010 as a Nigerian body under the International Communion of Charismatic Archbishops, Bishops and Apostles, headquartered in Washington DC in the United States.
“We began even from that time to advocate for support for the government in power, because there is a biblical injunction that no power can exist without the approval of God Almighty. And so the Bible tells us we should pray for the powers that be, because the powers that be, they are of God.”
He said the practice is not new and is not confined to the present administration: “We’ve had our Senate. The first general Senate was in 2012, and in that 2012 we declared our support for the government of President Goodluck Jonathan and we prayed for him that he will succeed. And it continues like that until today, not out of any selfish interest, but in the general interest of Nigeria.”
He pointed to the body’s publication: “That’s why we have this national prayer handbook. This is the third edition. We always release this national prayer handbook and the focus here is not politics. The focus here is Nigeria.”
The Secretary General gave the membership figures: “As at 2012, when I was consecrated a bishop, we had 315 bishops present. I have photographs of that.” He added: “In 2014, we elevated the first Liberian archbishop. There is no country in Africa that we are not present in and we don’t have bishops in. We are the largest single episcopal body in the entire Africa. On our platform alone, we have over 950 bishops.”
On the outcome of the Senate itself, Kawas said: “Our Senate lasted for three days, and it was a time of training for our bishops. It was a time of reorientation of our bishops and our apostles, that they should concentrate on the word of God and focus on the things that matter, the well-being of our people and the integrity of Christian leadership. It was a wonderful success. We had people from different parts of Nigeria and also Nigerian bishops from other countries of the world.”
“It Is Unheard Of To Think That Because I Am A Bishop I Should Have No Interest In Politics”
Confronted with the accusation that the group functions as political bishops rather than pastors, and asked whether it could have spoken to the President as the Catholic bishops did, telling him of hunger in the land, insecurity, the state of the economy and the need for politicians to cut their pay, the Secretary General went to scripture.
“First and foremost, it is unheard of for anybody to think that just because I am a pastor, I am a bishop, so I should have no interest in politics. Are you saying that you are not aware that in the Bible God requires of us to understand that he has told us right from Genesis chapter one, when he created man, in verse 26, that the first assignment he gave to the man is for the man to have dominion in this world? What does it mean to have dominion? To have dominion means to be in charge.”
He added: “It is very painful that Christians have sat back, folded their hands and said politics is a dirty game, and they have left dirty people to take over politics.”
“The Muslim Muslim Ticket Has Been Demystified”
Asked whether, as an archbishop, he should not have an interest in seeing a Christian occupy the presidency or vice presidency, Kawas said the concern had been overtaken by events.
“The Muslim Muslim ticket has been demystified by President Tinubu in his political appointments, giving even more sensitive positions to Christians. So the issue of Muslim Muslim that scared us before, that made us jittery before, has now been demystified, that it is not really the religion that matters. It is the quality of the leader that matters, and he has demonstrated that by how he has given these sensitive positions to Christians to run.”
“So it’s no longer a thing to be afraid of, and we Nigerians should focus more on the quality of the leader than the religion of the leader.”
The Secretary General, however, did not disown the original objection: “About the Muslim Muslim ticket, I just want to say, yes, we are worried about that. We would have thought that wouldn’t have sent the kind of shock waves that we have, if it was a Muslim Christian ticket. But what we are trying to do right here is that we are trying to ensure that we contribute to stabilising the country. We are trying to ensure that we don’t contribute to setting ourselves against each other.”
“I Will Hold Nothing Back In Telling President Tinubu The Very Truth”
Put to him that Nigerians are angry because the group lacks the courage to tell the President the situation on the streets, Kawas rejected the claim and cited the killings in Benue State.
“It is a lie. I will hold nothing back in telling President Tinubu the very truth. If I see him, I want you to know that we were the ones that called on President Tinubu to look into when people were dying en masse in Benue State. We challenged him and we told him he must go to Benue and see what is happening, and he listened to us and he went there.”
He said the conference also pressed for international collaboration on security: “We told him again that, Mr. President, you cannot just sit down here in Nigeria and think that the Nigerian army alone can solve this problem, that you should collaborate internationally. And I was calling from Washington DC and I was saying I’m coming to Nigeria, and that if he doesn’t do anything about it, we are going to march on the street. And President Tinubu listened to us and sent people to America. I was part of those who assisted to ensure that the American government gave support of intelligence for the Nigeria situation so that it can be easily solved.”
“So it is not possible for anybody to think that we are just worshipping Mr. President. We don’t do that. We will tell him the very truth and I have done it before. Sometimes when I speak, some people are afraid and they say, some of these things you are saying, I hope you won’t put yourself in trouble with the President. I said, no, I support the President, but I’ll have to tell him the truth when that truth arises.”
“We Are Not Village Headmasters To The President”
Asked about the presence of the Minister of Information and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation at the Senate, and the resulting perception that it was a government sponsored event, the Secretary General drew a distinction between counsel and confrontation.
“Yes, we usually speak truth to power, but that does not mean that when we come before the President and we want to talk to the President, we should behave like we are village headmasters to the President or to the nation. We’re not village headmasters.”
“We have our own constitutional rule. Our constitution is the Bible. And the Bible guides what we do and what we say. The Bible says that we should pray for them that are in authority. We should counsel, we should advise them and we should guide them, and guide our flocks aright. The Bible did not say we should come before the government and begin to talk to them about things that ordinarily the politicians should be talking to them about.”
He added: “It’s none of our business if the other political parties are unable to hold their own. That’s politics. It’s not my business if Peter Obi is not able to manage the Labour Party, and if he’s not able to cohabit with David Mark and all of that.”
“If We Were Paid, We Would Not Have Given Room For Everyone To Speak Their Minds”
Asked directly whether the government could have sponsored the event, and why no channel was created for the bishops to meet the President and put their concerns to him, Kawas answered with an internal test.
“We look forward to that, but I want to say categorically that if we were paid to endorse President Tinubu, then we would not have given room for every of our principal officers that were there, from the six geopolitical zones, to speak their minds.”
Asked whether there had been disagreement over the endorsement, he cited one instance: “One of us even came out there and was asking for the President to release Nnamdi Kanu. If we had been paid, would we have the boldness to be doing that? We would not have mentioned Nnamdi Kanu’s case there.”
He added: “We did this on our own, and I arrived Nigeria the night before. So I didn’t have any time or opportunity to meet with any government official.”
On the unusual character of that day’s proceedings, the Secretary General said: “This particular unconventional aspect of our Senate was meant to speak to the nation. It was only for that particular day. Before that particular moment, if you had come to the venue, we were busy consecrating bishops and apostles, pouring oil on them.”
On Weakening The Opposition
Asked whether the endorsement, coming alongside a reported endorsement by 500 imams, does not weaken the opposition and alienate members of their own congregations who belong to opposition parties, the Secretary General said the responsibility lies elsewhere.
“We are not the only religious group in Nigeria. There are also many religious groups that support Peter Obi, like the Catholic bishops you were talking about, who came to Mr. President and after that came to this your studio and were acting as if they are the opposition political party. You don’t expect clergy to do the work of the opposition. The oppositions are there. They should come out and do their own work. If they are failing in their roles as opposition party, then they shouldn’t blame us because we supported President Tinubu.”
He then registered a reservation of his own on regional rotation: “But what we are saying is that let us be fair. I don’t see why we just finished with a president from an extraction of the country and then now another president again from that tribe again,” a reference to the North.
“God Speaks To Us”
On Primate Ayodele’s assertion that God would not have spoken to them to endorse the President, the Secretary General responded by pointing to the scale of the body’s pastoral work.
“So now you have about 950 bishops in Nigeria. They have churches. There are some of our bishops that one man is the general overseer over 120 churches. There are others that have about 70 something churches. I do have churches in my village around the mountains between my village and Cameroon,” which he identified as Benue State.
“So God speaks to us. God speaks to us to plant churches, to go for missionary work and all of that, to save lives. But God never speaks to us to talk to politicians? Is that what he’s saying? I’m so sorry, Primate Ayodele. President Tinubu will not listen to you.”
“It Is A Prophecy From God”
Asked what would follow if the prediction fails and the President loses in 2027, Kawas declined to entertain the possibility.
“Let’s wait for 2027. President Tinubu will be president in 2027. He will win the election. He will be sworn in and he will serve a second time.”
Asked whether that was a prophecy or a political statement, he replied: “It is a prophecy from God, because I did it before, when he was not president. I stood by him. I was a member of the ACN and I always told people that this man will be president.”
The Secretary General went further: “Definitely he will win. And he’s not only going to win, he will perform better.”
Asked whether members object to their leaders taking public political positions, Kawas said: “We do not impose our decision on anybody. There are times when I have to speak as a person. I have to speak sometimes as a prophet.”
On Poverty, Insecurity And The Governors
Asked whether he is not troubled by the poverty and insecurity reported by his own church members, some of whom can no longer pay tithes or offerings, the Secretary General said the government has improved on its core duty and placed part of the responsibility on state governors.
“The primary role of government is to provide security for lives and properties. Currently this government, they’ve upped their game in that aspect, and we are very, very satisfied with the efforts of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in combating the insecurity challenges that we have. There are a lot of results.”
“At the state level, remember that the President removed subsidy and he’s given more money to the state governors, and they are the chief security officers of the state. Now if the governor who is the chief security officer of the state is not able to at least do his own bit, you’re not going to blame President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for 36 states of the federation. He is definitely also responsible in a way, but it is a joint effort.”
“Take Aside The Prophecy And Look At The Stats”
Pressed a final time on the risk of being accused of false prophecy, the Secretary General offered a political arithmetic instead.
“Let’s put it this way. Take aside the prophecy and look at the stats. Right now, we have about 31 governors in Nigeria campaigning for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We have only 36 states of the federation. And the Minister of the FCT is also the most outstanding minister and he’s also campaigning,” a reference to Mr. Nyesom Wike.
“So given these stats, what is your own forecast? Because politics is about influence, and in this nation, when you’re talking about influence, you’re talking about those that have the authority to influence.”
The interview closed with the clerics presenting the Nigeria National Prayer Handbook, which they said is distributed free of charge across the country and is dedicated to the nation and to the First Lady.
Interested buyers are encouraged to place their orders and enquiries via:
0704 444 4777, 0704 444 4999, 0818 199 9888
Website: www.alexandernigeria.com
The book also examines Nigeria's legal ecosystem, focusing on the LPELR and NBA AI Guidelines. As a bonus, every purchase comes with a FREE eBook titled: How to Use the AI Features in LegalPedia and LawPavilion.
Ohio Books Ltd praises the publication, stating:
"....this is the only Nigerian book I know of on the topic."
How to Order:
📞 Call, Text, or WhatsApp: 08034917063 | 07055285878
📧 Email: benadigwe1@gmail.com
🌎 Website: www.benadigwe.com
Ebook Version: Access it directly online at https://selar.com/prv626
Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe Esq., ACIarb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director at the Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
_______________________________________________________________________
