A human rights lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, has criticised the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, over his recent appearance at a church service in Abuja.
This was just as he warned politicians against using places of worship for political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 elections.
Adeyanju argued that elections should be centred on competing ideas, policies and visions for Nigeria rather than religion, describing churches as inappropriate venues for political campaigns or attempts to secure religious endorsement.
He made the remarks in a statement posted on his social media handles on Tuesday.
According to him, religious leaders should stop providing politicians with platforms to campaign or seek endorsements, warning that the politicisation of religious spaces could deepen divisions within the country.
“The church is not a place for political campaigns or political gimmicks, and politicians are not pastors. Pastors and religious leaders should stop giving politicians platforms to campaign or seek endorsements in church,” Adeyanju said.
He also cited the Electoral Act 2026, claiming that the law prohibits the use of places of worship for political campaigns and bars campaigning on religious, tribal or sectional grounds.
Adeyanju further condemned the recent gathering of religious clerics by a governor to endorse President Bola Tinubu, but said he was equally concerned by Obi’s appearance at a church service, which he described as a possible return to the religious mobilisation that characterised the 2023 presidential election.
His comments followed Obi’s attendance at Sunday’s worship service at Koinonia Global, where he was acknowledged by Apostle Joshua Selman, founder of Eternity Network International.
In his remarks, Obi asked Nigerians to pray for political leaders, particularly for politicians to stop stealing public funds.
“I don’t know what to say, but people are here for different reasons. We are all here for prayers, but pray for us politicians to stop stealing,” Obi said during the service.
The former Anambra State governor maintained that politicians were responsible for many of Nigeria’s problems, insisting that the country itself was not fundamentally defective.
“Politicians are the problem of the country. There is nothing wrong with the country, but the politicians are the issue,” he said.
Obi further urged the congregation to pray for all politicians rather than judging them according to their political affiliations or perceived performance.
“Pray for us politicians. Let God touch us to cease stealing. Do not say one is good and another is bad. We (politicians) are the problem of the country,” he added
The NDC candidate also reflected on Nigeria’s development trajectory compared with countries that gained independence around the same period, urging Nigerians to read Growing Apart, a book he said highlights how countries achieved development by adopting different approaches.
Obi said Nigeria could also make progress if public officials stopped embezzling public funds and committed themselves to doing the right thing.
But Adeyanju maintained that such appearances by politicians in religious settings risk blurring the line between worship and political activity.
He warned that the religious divisions associated with the 2023 election should not be allowed to recur in 2027.
“At what cost will it be when we continue to divide ourselves along religious lines using the weapon of politics? At what cost? The bad precedent set in 2023 should not be repeated, let alone worsened,” Adeyanju said.
He urged pastors and other religious leaders to keep political actors from using churches as campaign platforms, arguing that doing so was necessary to preserve the sanctity and credibility of religious institutions.
“All is not fair in politics. All is not fair in politics like President Tinubu wrongly said,” he added.
