Lagos, Nigeria: Pastor Tunde Bakare, Serving Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church, has clarified his recent comments about the African Democratic Congress (ADC), stating that his reference to the 2006 ADC plane crash was metaphorical and not intended to mock the victims or the party.
Bakare said he was misquoted as his reference to the ADC plane crash was a metaphor and not meant to mock the ADC political party or the victims of the plane crash.
The Pastor, who is also the Founder and Board Chairman of the Citadel School of Government, clarified at a news conference in Lagos on Sunday.
Bakare had made remarks at a news conference on Oct. 4, stating that some ADC members were approaching him to join their party, and he also referenced the ADC flight.
According to him, it is sad that public commentators deliberately linked his ADC party comment to the plane crash.
“To those commentators who have criticised my comment as insensitive for something not more than a metaphor, I ask whether, at some point in their careers, they have used the Titanic as a metaphor to warn of pending danger.
“I also understand that some have amplified that imagery to score political points and further denounce the ADC party.
“For instance, on Thursday, the President of the Nigerian Senate, Godswill Akpabio, alluded to the ‘crash’ imagery in his description of the ADC party in an exchange on the floor of the senate with its Minority Leader, Abba Moro.”
Bakare further explained that he used the ADC airline allusion to let Nigerian leaders know that power is transient and that they must serve the people.
“Let this undue controversy surrounding the ADC crash metaphor serve as a warning.
“Let every person saddled with solemn responsibility of steering the ship of state at any level, local, state or national, or in any arm of government, executive, legislative or judicial, learn from history and recognise the transience of power.
“For those struggling to obtain power, whether in the ruling party or the opposition, I hope they learn the lessons of history.
“I seriously hope that those in the cockpit of our nation’s governance, and those trying to change course midair, will see the handwriting on the wall,” he said.
According to him, leaders should commit to using power as a platform for serving the people rather than for personal gain.
Speaking at the Citadel School of Government, Bakare reiterated that the school is not partisan and will not be partisan.
He said: “Still, about the misconceptions around my statement, it was brought to my notice that because I made that statement at the Citadel School of Government, there is a risk of it being misconstrued and misinterpreted to link the institution with partisanship.
“I want to state categorically that Citadel School of Government has no affiliation whatsoever with any political party and is completely non-partisan.
“As a Nigerian citizen, Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution guarantees my right to freedom of association, including the right to join a political party.
“My nation-building journey has seen me exercise this right. I am a nation builder with my face set like a flint on one goal to facilitate the emergence of the New Nigeria that works for every Nigerian in my lifetime, a peaceful, progressive, and prosperous nation of endless possibilities.
“Let me, therefore, reemphasise the fact that Citadel School of Government is non-partisan and is open to every Nigerian who has a desire to make our nation great.
“It is open to every Nigerian with a track record of public or private sector impact and the willingness to cultivate the behavioural and technical competencies needed to lead locally, nationally, continentally or globally.”
