By Oby Ezekwesili
Rooted in scriptural and spiritual wisdom, Pastor E.A. Adeboye- like a true bearer of the Cross of Christ – has often chosen dignified silence whenever attacked. Through the years, I learned from him to do the same.
But this moment demands a historical clarity that we must not miss. I must therefore write publicly to help bring us back to what truly matters and to the urgency of this moment.
In doing so, it is crucial to first acknowledge the broader context in which criticisms of public figures have erupted in our beleaguered country. Nigerians are exhausted. Decades of systemic corruption, insecurity, economic hardship, and unfulfilled promises have produced a deep well of frustration. That frustration has evolved into trenchant distrust – not only of politicians, but of institutions and influential individuals whom the people believe possess the moral authority to demand accountability from those in power.
Across Nigeria today, the cry is simple:
“Our religious leaders must rise and help rescue Nigeria from the grip of ineffectual, corrupt, and selfish politicians.”
This is the crux of the matter. Nothing else.
And this is how I want to see where Pastor Adeboye – a simple messenger of God – who has dedicated his life to both praying and speaking up for the good of Nigeria and Nigerians matters in ongoing conversations of this scary time.
Pastor Adeboye does not only pray about Nigeria’s governance. He speaks. He has always spoken when it matters. I know this personally, and evidence abounds. This piece will provide two of the most compelling examples.
We must avoid our national habit of “majoring in the minors” – the distractions that consume public energy while our country slides deeper into crisis. Over the decades, I have watched Nigerians repeatedly miss the mark of what matters most. I now understand this as a psychological coping mechanism that paradoxically rewards the failures of ineffectual governments, allowing Nigeria and her people to degrade year after year, decade after decade.
It allows political leaders to deflect responsibility while the people pummel a soft target. It perpetuates our national decline from one administration to the next. It is a self‑sabotaging pattern. We must break that pattern now and confront the terrifying reality of this moment.
Nigerians, our two‑year‑old baby, Christianah Akanbi, is in the wilds and has been held captive for several days now. This is our horrific reality.
Twelve years after the tragedy of the Chibok Secondary School girls’ abduction in Borno State, it is now our two‑year‑old – a toddler who simply went to school – who has been abducted along with 49 others: his carers, older pupils, secondary school students, and seven teachers.
The reality is that our baby and the rest of our children, women, and men are being held captive by terrorists in Oyo State, South‑West Nigeria. Let that sink into our hearts.
The reality is that three different administrations since Chibok – and the Nigerian State itself – has still failed to protect our children and secure our country.
We must face the reality that one of the teachers of our two‑year‑old baby was brutally beheaded in his presence. The terrorists recorded and released the video to taunt Nigerians, to show that they – not our government – hold the upper hand.
Our baby is still in the wild with terrorists. Let this image sink into our hearts.
Let the image of the wailing and terrified Principal, Rachael Alamu, in the video – guns pointed at her by captors who hide from view- sink into our hearts.
No, Pastor Adeboye is not our problem. He speaks.
He spoke in the 1990s. He spoke in the early 2000s. He spoke in 2010. He spoke in 2020. He spoke in 2025.
He has spoken across administrations, regardless of who governed or governs as President. The real question is: How many of us were listening?
Did I hear you ask, “What did he say, and when?”
I will share two of the most relevant examples- not only because they are factual, but because they embody the pathway forward for our beleaguered country, if we are finally ready to listen, act, and compel our government to lead the reforms Pastor Adeboye has long advocated.
1. November 2025 – A Direct Public Message to President Tinubu
Contrary to the misinformation circulating online, Pastor Adeboye’s strong message was delivered in November 2025, during the Holy Ghost Service- not this week.
He said: “You can only advise the Commander‑in‑Chief; you cannot command him. But I’ve tried. God is my witness.”
“Tell our security chiefs to get rid of these terrorists within 90 days or resign.”
He added: “They must eliminate the terrorists and their sponsors, no matter how influential.”
These are not the words of a passive observer. These are the words of a citizen – an influential leader – demanding results, accountability, and consequences for failure.
This is the same Pastor Adeboye some are attacking today.
He issued one of the strongest public demands for accountability ever made by a Nigerian religious leader. But how many of us were listening? What did the president do with that message? And what did we do with it?
2. October 1, 2020 – A Public Call for Structural Reform
At a national governance forum co‑organised by the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) and the Nehemiah Leadership Institute to mark Nigeria’s 60th Independence Anniversary, Pastor Adeboye critiqued our dysfunctional governance structure:
“It is ridiculous that a traditional ruler must inform a local government chairman before he travels.”
He went further: “We all know that we must restructure. It is either we restructure or we break. You don’t have to be a prophet to know that. Now, we don’t want to break up – God forbid.”
He proposed a “United States of Nigeria” – a governance model with a president and a prime minister, rooted in institutional effectiveness.
These are not the words of a man indifferent to Nigeria’s future.
Nigeria is structurally dysfunctional. As presently constituted, cycles of elections without correcting the underlying structure will only degrade – but God forbid- collapse this country.
Now that we know – from just two of his many significant public statements that Pastor Adeboye has long been speaking truth to power on the hydra-headed crises that cripple our nation‑building process, the real question becomes:
What are we all now going to do about it? “Shall these bones live?”
Like Ezekiel in the valley of dry bones, we stand in a moment of national reckoning.
The bones can live – but only if we act.
It is time for Nigerians to let the image of our two‑year‑old baby held captive by our common enemies galvanize us to collectively rescue that child and through her rescue our nation.
The answer, my compatriots, is in our own hands.
*Dr Oby Ezekwesili is a former Minister of Education
