Pastor Tunde Bakare, overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church, reminded his congregation on Sunday that he had previously cautioned Nigerians about the perils of “Emilokan” politics.
During President Bola Tinubu’s campaign leading up to the 2023 elections, the Yoruba word “Emlokan,” which means “It’s my turn,” gained popularity.
Emilokan, according to Bakare, has a propensity for authoritarianism.
The cleric said:
“I’m reminded of the warning that I sounded to Nigerians in January 2023 in my address titled, ‘Bridging the gap between politics and governance.’
I warned that the politics of entitlement, the ‘emilokan’ type of politics, would breed an imperium presidency, one that would slide towards dictatorship and would be intolerant of dissent.”
Bakare also expressed scepticism about ECOWAS’s proposed military intervention in the Republic of Niger.
He said:
“Local support for Nigeria by Nigeriens is at an all-time low. It is, therefore, counterproductive to engage in warfare. While we condemn coup d’etats in West Africa, we recognise that the situation calls for deep introspection on the part of African leaders. We call upon Nigeria at this time to provide good leadership. The real question is whether President Tinubu has the capacity to provide moral leadership even in the domestic context.”
Bakare had contested in last year’s All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary, which produced Tinubu as the flagbearer.