RCCG Overseer to Nigerians: Don’t pressure Adeboye to speak against Tinubu

Pastor Joseph Odesola, Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Continental Overseer for Continent 3, has warned against pressuring the church’s General Overseer, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, to publicly criticize President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Odesola emphasized that such pressure is inappropriate, stated that Adeboye would speak on the country’s political and economic situation when he believed it was the appropriate time to do so.

He expressed the position in an article published by Impact Nigeria on Monday and shared on his X page with the caption, “Pastor E.A. Adeboye Will Speak Only When God Says Speak.”

Odesola said there was growing pressure on religious leaders, particularly Adeboye, to make public statements about the Tinubu administration, noting that some people appeared to have already decided what they wanted the cleric to say.

He said, “Some people are waiting eagerly for Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye to speak about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“But it appears that they are not merely waiting for him to speak; they already have a script they want him to follow.”

According to him, some people expected Adeboye to insult Tinubu, condemn him in strong language or make religious pronouncements against the President.

He, however, argued that such expectations were inconsistent with the way a responsible religious leader should operate.

He wrote, “But that is not Pastor Adeboye. And, more importantly, that is not how a responsible servant of God should operate.”

Odesola said Adeboye had spent decades building a reputation for speaking from conviction, prayer and spiritual responsibility, adding that the cleric should not be expected to speak simply because people demanded it.

He said, “A man of God does not have to speak simply because people are demanding that he speak.”

“There is a difference between speaking because the crowd is shouting and speaking because one has something meaningful to say.

“There is also a difference between political commentary and prophetic responsibility.”

Odesola maintained that if Adeboye believed he had a message from God for the nation, he would speak, adding that the cleric could also choose to pray, counsel or remain silent depending on what he considered appropriate.

He cited Ecclesiastes 3:1, which states, “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven,” arguing that there was a time to speak and a time to remain silent.

The RCCG overseer also warned against attempts to turn religious leaders into instruments for validating political positions.

“A genuine servant of God should not become the mouthpiece of any political camp,” he said.

According to him, the church should be able to speak truth to power without becoming a political party or an opposition platform.

“Pastor Adeboye should therefore not be pressured to insult President Tinubu simply because some people believe that is what a ‘bold’ Christian leader ought to do,” he added.

Odesola argued that criticism of government should not necessarily be delivered through insults or anger.

“Truth does not become more powerful because it is delivered with insults. A curse does not become a prophecy simply because it is pronounced from a pulpit.

“And anger should never be mistaken for spiritual authority,” he further noted.

The cleric also rejected the idea that religious authority should be determined solely by titles, arguing that spiritual responsibility was personal.

He said Christians should not diminish anyone’s calling because of their position within the church.

“There is no ‘only’ in a divine calling,” he stated.