A civil rights activist, Dr. Thompson Udenwa, has urged all faith leaders to resist the temptation of selective criticism and to maintain integrity in speaking truth to power, regardless of changing political climates.
Udenwa disclosed this in a press statement on Thursday. He also accused the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Rev. Matthew Hassan Kukah, of shifting his position on addressing reports of alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
According to him, only a few years ago, the outspoken Catholic cleric had been at the forefront of those urging the United States Government to designate Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).
Udenwa queried why the same bishop, who in 2021 addressed the American Congress lamenting the Buhari administration’s alleged indifference to Christian persecution, would now advocate against the very measure he once described as “moral justice.”
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“While I distance myself from the political undercurrents in the ongoing debate, I find Bishop Kukah’s recent statement troubling,” Udenwa said. “Not long ago, he stood as one of the loudest voices calling for international recognition of the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Today, he appears to have retreated from that conviction.”
He further noted that Bishop Kukah’s latest comments came during the launch of the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) 2025 World Report on Religious Freedom held at the Augustinianum Hall, Vatican City, on October 21, 2025, where the cleric acknowledged Nigeria’s deep-seated security and governance challenges but urged the international community not to punish the country through sanctions or diplomatic isolation.
