Pastor Tunde Bakare, the leader of Citadel Global Community Church, defended his state-of-the-nation address from critics by stating that receiving zero votes in a primary election with true identity, integrity, and original credentials from reputable schools is a badge of honor.
He also advised Nigerians to avoid those promoting the idea of “my turn” and criticized politicians who avoid public debates and answering questions directed at them.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) dismissed Bakare as a political paperweight whose statements should not be taken seriously. Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, Director of Special Media Projects/New Media at the PCC, stated that Bakare received zero votes at the convention.
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Special Adviser to the PCC, Dele Alake, also referred to Bakare as a political newcomer. Bakare responded by questioning the attention given to his statements and suggested that the PCC’s perception of him as a “paperweight” is too heavy for them to handle.
“There are some defeats that can be more significant than victories.” Bakare stated that one of the PCC’s Special Advisers, who he believed had some level of integrity, had falsely claimed that he had made a video asking members of his church to vote for a candidate and then later telling them not to vote for him.
He denied the existence of such a video and explained that the video in question was from a message he had preached at the Citadel Global Community Church in 2020 with the title “An idle man’s brain is the devil’s workshop.”
He emphasized that he had made it clear in the video that he did not endorse the candidate’s lifestyle, business or type of politics.
In the video, Bakare stated that he never instructed his members to vote or not vote for a particular candidate, and emphasized that his members are not robots, they have their own minds and will make their own decisions on election day.
He also addressed the PCC’s accusations of lying and fabrication, and stated that those who engage in such behavior will face consequences as stated in Psalm 58:3-8,
“The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.” He also said that he will not be affected by the PCC’s attacks and that he knows that according to Voltaire, many people are prone to making mistakes, some don’t reason at all and others will persecute those who do reason.
