… Rejects Commercial Bus Preaching Restriction, We Will Obey God Rather Than Man
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President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Bishop Francis Wale Oke, has declared that Christians will continue preaching inside commercial buses despite the controversy surrounding the provision prohibiting preaching and hawking in passenger vehicles.
Oke, who spoke during a church sermon on Sunday, criticised the National Assembly over the provision and vowed that members of the PFN would resist any attempt to prevent Christians from evangelising in commercial vehicles.
He maintained that preaching the gospel was a divine obligation that could not be overridden by legislation, warning that Christians would choose obedience to God over compliance with any restriction they considered inconsistent with their faith.
“We will preach in buses. We will preach everywhere,” Oke declared, adding: “We will rather obey God than man.”
The cleric said the government should be prepared to arrest large numbers of Christians if it intended to enforce the provision, insisting that the PFN would not direct its members to abandon evangelism in commercial buses.
He accused lawmakers of concentrating on peaceful religious preaching while insecurity, kidnapping, banditry, rape and other violent crimes continued to threaten Nigerians.
According to him, lawmakers should devote greater attention to apprehending armed criminals, kidnappers, killers and others responsible for worsening insecurity rather than targeting individuals preaching messages of peace.
Oke questioned why those responsible for violent crimes appeared to attract less legislative attention than Christians sharing the gospel with passengers.
He maintained that evangelism had transformed lives and should not be placed in the same category as conduct that threatens public safety.
“This law, we will break it,” the PFN president said as he urged Christians not to be intimidated by the possibility of arrest or prosecution.
His declaration came amid continuing disagreement over the Federal Road Safety Corps Amendment Bill, 2026, and reports that it prescribes a ₦50,000 fine for preaching, hawking or trading inside commercial vehicles.
The Senate has, however, clarified that the restriction was not newly introduced by the current amendment. It said preaching and hawking in commercial vehicles had been treated as road traffic offences since the enactment of the Federal Road Safety Commission Establishment Act in 2007.
According to the upper chamber, the provision previously appeared as Item 36 in the Second Schedule to the Act and was merely renumbered as Item 49 in the amendment under consideration.
The Senate also said the restriction applies specifically to activities inside commercial vehicles and does not outlaw street preaching or religious activities in other public places.
It explained that the measure was intended to protect commuters and other road users from distractions rather than suppress religious worship or public evangelism.
The Federal Road Safety Corps’ official schedule of offences and penalties currently lists “preaching or hawking in commercial vehicle” as an offence carrying a ₦50,000 fine, reinforcing the Senate’s position that the rule predates the ongoing amendment.
The Senate further stated that the legislation originated in the House of Representatives and was transmitted to the upper chamber as a concurrence bill rather than being personally sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele.
It added that the amendment process had not been concluded and invited religious organisations, civil society groups and other concerned stakeholders to formally present their objections before the legislative process was completed.
Despite the clarification, Christian organisations have continued to oppose the provision, arguing that its enforcement could interfere with the constitutional rights to freedom of religion and expression.
The Christian Council of Nigeria and the Organisation of African Instituted Churches have called for the provision to be reconsidered, warning against equating peaceful evangelism with commercial hawking and trading.
The Organisation of African Instituted Churches also urged President Bola Tinubu to withhold assent from any legislation capable of criminalising peaceful religious expression without adequate consultation.
Oke’s intervention has now intensified the debate, with the PFN president insisting that Christians will continue preaching in buses regardless of any attempt to enforce the existing provision or preserve it under the proposed amendment.
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