Senate Explodes: Tunde Bakare’s Comments Are Dangerous, Divisive, and Politically Motivated

The Senate has responded strongly to Pastor Tunde Bakare’s criticism over emergency rule in Rivers and the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti. Read what they said and why they believe Bakare has crossed the line.

 

The Nigerian Senate has fired back at fiery cleric and politician, Pastor Tunde Bakare, accusing him of making “misleading and corrosive” statements over its role in the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State and the controversial suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

 

Bakare, the serving overseer of The Citadel Global Community Church, in a sermon on Sunday, had condemned the Senate’s ratification of the emergency rule declared by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the red chamber’s decision to suspend Akpoti-Uduaghan, describing Nigeria’s leadership as veering toward “mafia state” tendencies.

 

“It is clear that our so-called leaders are determined to turn Nigeria into a mafia state,” Pastor Tunde Bakare declared. “The two main contenders in the ongoing institutional immorality Olympics are the executive and the legislature.”

 

But the Senate, through a sharply worded statement issued on Tuesday by Yemi Adaramodu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, said Bakare’s comments were not just disrespectful but also dangerous to Nigeria’s democratic institutions.

 

“While the Senate respects the right of every citizen to express views, we are compelled to respond when commentary crosses the line into unwarranted invective and misleading assertions,” Adaramodu stated.

 

Senate Calls Out “Contempt, Bias, and Political Agenda”

 

The Senate acknowledged Bakare’s history as a public commentator and political figure, but accused him of crossing the line from constructive criticism to contemptuous rhetoric.

 

“Pastor Bakare’s recent statements are unfortunately laced with unsubstantiated claims and political bias. We view his corrosive criticism as a politically motivated sermon masked in ecclesiastical garb,” Adaramodu said.

 

Highlighting the cleric’s legal background and political ambition, the Senate reminded Bakare of the constitutional limits guiding public commentary—especially in matters that are sub judice (before the court).

 

“As a trained lawyer, Pastor Tunde Bakare should know better than to fan political tensions around sensitive, unresolved legal issues,” the Senate spokesperson said.

 

“We Won’t Be Drawn into Street Fights with the Executive”

 

Adaramodu also addressed calls for open hostility between the legislature and the executive, a dynamic Bakare hinted at in his speech. He dismissed such confrontations as performative politics rather than real legislative oversight.

 

“True institutional maturity lies not in performative hostility, but in principled engagements and results-driven governance,” he said.

 

Bakare’s “Third-Term Agenda” Reference Is Misleading

 

Reacting to Pastor Tunde Bakare’s allusion to the infamous third-term agenda of a former president, Adaramodu called it misplaced and dangerous.

 

“At no time has the 10th National Assembly received or entertained any unconstitutional proposal from the executive,” he clarified.

 

The Senate also pointed out that Bakare’s pattern of attacking previous legislative assemblies—which he now praises—reveals an inconsistency rooted more in personal politics than patriotism.

 

“We are confident that time will vindicate the 10th Assembly, just as it has those he once criticized but now commends,” Adaramodu concluded.