The Senate has condemned Pastor Tunde Bakare, Senior Pastor of the Global Community Citadel Church, over his recent remarks criticising the 10th National Assembly, stating that he had “overstepped his bounds.”
The response came through a statement released in Abuja on Tuesday by Senator Yemi Adaramodu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs.
Bakare, who ran against President Bola Tinubu in the 2022 APC presidential primaries, made the controversial comments during his Easter State-of-the-Nation address in Lagos.
In his speech, he accused the President of turning the legislature into a “haven for legislative rascality” and described it as the 48th member of the Federal Executive Council.
He also criticised the National Assembly for supporting the state of emergency in Rivers State and highlighted the country’s rising insecurity, referencing recent violence in Plateau, Benue, and Enugu states.
Senator Adaramodu, however, dismissed Bakare’s statements as politically charged and misleading.
“We consider his harsh remarks about the National Assembly as nothing more than a politically motivated sermon,” the Senate spokesperson said.
He added that the Senate would not engage in discussions about matters currently before the courts, in adherence to the rule of law and respect for judicial independence.
Adaramodu acknowledged that tension between the legislative and executive arms can be a normal aspect of democratic governance, but insisted that Bakare’s sweeping criticisms were unfair and likely motivated by personal or political ambitions.
“Undermining an entire democratic institution due to ideological differences or future political ambitions is unjust and detrimental to national progress,” he stated.
While affirming Pastor Bakare’s right to express his views, Adaramodu stressed that the cleric’s allegations were baseless and misleading, prompting the Senate to issue a rebuttal to set the record straight.
He also pointed out that the Assembly has, on several occasions, challenged the executive, contrary to Bakare’s insinuations—including on issues related to the controversial state of emergency in Rivers.
The Senate spokesman further criticised Bakare’s attempt to compare the current Assembly’s actions with its historical rejection of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s Third Term bid.
