It Didn’t Disrespect Him – Tinubu’s Aide Clarifies Response To Cardinal Onaiyekan

The Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, has clarified that his recent response to Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, on the country’s economic situation did not disrespect the cleric or the church.

Naija News recalls that Onaiyekan, alongside a delegation from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) met with Tinubu at the State House, Abuja, to discuss issues including insecurity, tertiary education, the state of democracy, credible elections and poverty.

Onaiyekan spoke about the meeting during an interview with Arise TV, recounting exchanges between the president and the bishops over the state of the Nigerian economy and other concerns raised by the delegation.

In his earlier response, Ajayi criticised Onaiyekan, describing his decision to publicly give his account of the private meeting as “an abuse of clerical privilege.”

However, speaking during an interview on ARISE TV on Thursday, Ajayi said his response was aimed at offering a different interpretation of the account given by the cardinal rather than questioning his standing in the church or society.

The presidential aide said the matter had been resolved and there was no intention to disrespect Onaiyekan.

He said, “Well, I think that episode has been closed. Cardinal Onaiyekan is a respected clergy and a statement in his own right.

“My response to him did not in any way disrespect him or disrespect his standing in society and the church. He’s one of the leaders of the faith.”

According to Ajaiyi, he only sought to provide another perspective on the account of the meeting between the bishops and Tinubu.

He added, “I only tried to provide a different perspective from his own account of the bishop’s encounter with the president, and I think that point has been made.

“And I think it’s not not something we really want to dwell further on.”