Paul Ibe, media aide to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has criticised the endorsement of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election by the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), describing it as another politically motivated religious endorsement.
Reacting in a post on his X handle on Thursday, Ibe questioned the credibility of the bishops’ group and drew parallels with the controversy over the alleged “fake bishops” that surfaced during the 2023 presidential campaign.
“Truly, the hood does not make the monk. If in doubt go ask the so-called ‘bishops’ probably deployed from beer shops, according to a friend, for a cameo appearance in APC’s ‘Fake Bishops’ Netflix series 1.”
He noted that Tinubu had secured another endorsement ahead of the 2027 election, this time from the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria.
“Fine. That is their democratic right. But Nigerians have a right to ask: who are the CBCN, and what is the basis of this endorsement?”
The Atiku aide questioned whether the endorsement was based on what he described as the administration’s performance in office.
“Was it Tinubu’s ‘economic miracle’—rising food prices, collapsing purchasing power, insecurity, unemployment and crushing hardship?
“Or is this simply another religious endorsement being added to the 2027 campaign machinery?”
Ibe argued that religious titles should not be used to influence public opinion, recalling the controversy surrounding the alleged use of clerics during the 2023 election.
“We have seen this movie before. In 2023, the APC’s ‘fake bishops’ controversy exposed how easily clerical robes could be deployed for political optics.”
He added: “Today, another group of bishops has emerged to endorse Tinubu.
“But robes do not confer credibility. Titles do not guarantee moral authority. And endorsements do not substitute for performance.”
According to Ibe, Nigerians will ultimately determine the outcome of the 2027 election based on the government’s record rather than endorsements from religious groups.
“In 2027, Nigerians—not bishops—will deliver the verdict.
“And that verdict will be based on food prices, jobs, security, wages, purchasing power and lived experience—not robes and rhetoric.”
The post comes after the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria publicly endorsed President Tinubu for a second term, a development that has continued to generate reactions from political stakeholders ahead of the 2027 general election.
