LAGOS — The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has called on President Bola Tinubu to withhold assent to the proposed anti-preaching and hawking legislation currently before the National Assembly, describing the bill as unnecessary and out of touch with the country’s most pressing challenges.
The Christian body made the appeal after a meeting of its National Executive Council in Lagos, arguing that the proposed legislation should not be considered a priority at a time when Nigerians are grappling with insecurity, hunger and worsening economic hardship.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting, PFN National Secretary, Bishop David Bakare, said the country already had sufficient laws to regulate different aspects of national life, stressing that the major problem was the failure to effectively enforce existing legislation.
According to him, the government should focus its attention on issues that directly affect the welfare and security of citizens rather than introducing laws that, in the view of the PFN, do not address Nigeria’s immediate challenges.
“Many laws already exist in Nigeria which, if properly enforced, can bring sanity to different aspects of our national life. Our concern is that this law is not the urgent need of Nigerians at this time,” Bakare said.
He questioned the rationale behind provisions that could classify preaching in commercial vehicles as a traffic offence, arguing that lawmakers should have engaged in broader consultations with stakeholders before proceeding with the proposed legislation.
“We cannot understand how this has become a traffic offence in any form. There are other issues that can be considered traffic offences in Nigeria that have not been addressed,” he said.
The PFN official also expressed concern over the legislative process surrounding the bill, stating that the organisation was not fully aware of its current status in the House of Representatives following its reported passage by the Senate.
Bakare further warned that any legislation dealing with religious activities must be approached with caution because of the sensitive nature of religious issues in Nigeria.
He said the PFN viewed the proposed law as potentially discriminatory against Christians and expressed concern that its implementation could create unnecessary tension between religious groups and the government.
“Christians in Nigeria consider that law as being against the church. It is deliberately organised to stir up the church against the state,” he said.
The PFN National Secretary therefore appealed to President Tinubu not to assent to the bill in its present form, urging the President to return it for broader public consultation.
He called for relevant stakeholders, including religious organisations and other groups that could be directly affected by the proposed legislation, to be invited to participate in an open debate before any final decision is taken.
“Let the public debate it. Invite the relevant people who are directly affected by such laws to come and discuss it,” Bakare said.
The PFN maintained that the proposed legislation should not be prioritised over the urgent challenges confronting Nigerians, including insecurity, hunger and economic hardship, and urged the government to focus on measures capable of improving the living conditions of citizens.
