BY MAYOWA SAMUEL
The General Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church, formerly known as Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has denied claims that he had endorsed the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
Disclosing this in a statement on Friday, the former APC presidential aspirant also refuted claims that he was against the stand of the Christian Association of Nigeria regarding the Muslim-Muslim ticket by APC’s Tinubu and running mate, Kashim Shettima, as well as the controversial appearance of “clergymen” at Shettima’s unveiling as APC’s vice-presidential candidate.
In his statement titled ‘Reffutal: The statements credited to me are outright lies’, Pastor Bakare described the statements credited to him as “concocted and ridiculous,” adding that he wasn’t responsible for the statement by the “unscrupulous writers and bloggers,” and threatened to go to court if the act continues.
He said, “My attention has been drawn to the viral but concocted and ridiculous statements credited to me, by some unscrupulous writers and bloggers. Amongst other things, I was quoted to have said that the agitations by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), were ploys by the opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), to force a weak candidate on APC.
“In addition to this, I was alleged to have said that CAN wanted to lure APC into presenting a weak candidate. The spurious writers also alleged that I stressed that Christians are righteous people who behave like Christ, and that CAN are politicians who behave like PDP.
“As if the poorly strewn lies were not enough, I was quoted as saying that Tinubu is my candidate. Isn’t this the same Tinubu that I announced to all and sundry at the APC Presidential Convention that I was not stepping down for? He has suddenly become my candidate!
“I wish to state unequivocally that the statements are absolute lies. There was nowhere I granted anyone any interview, or preached on any platform, where I said the ludicrous statements. I challenge anyone who is in possession of the video or audio file of the statements to please put it in the public space.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I am a nation builder who will not in any way create real or imaginary division among the people of our great country, through the medium of political parties or religion.
“I therefore use this medium to ask everyone to disregard the alleged statements. The statements are not mine, and do not in any way represent my position. This is part of the lying propaganda of the mischievous ones seeking approval by deceit and at all costs. If the peddlers of this deliberate falsehood don’t desist from their highly condemnable acts, they will definitely have their day in court. Enough is enough“.
