Governor Umar Bago of Niger State has directed that all preachers in the state must submit their sermons for approval before delivering them.
The governor made this known during an appearance on TVC’s Politics on Sunday, where he addressed concerns over the recently announced law to regulate preaching in the state
“I didn’t ban evangelism,” Bago clarified. “For everyone going to sermon on Friday, he should bring his scriptures for review, and it’s normal. Even in Saudi Arabia, this is done. We cannot say because you have been given the opportunity to be a cleric, you will go out and preach the gospel that is anti-people, anti-government and you think it’s normal.”
When asked whether the directive was motivated by fears of indoctrination, the governor admitted it was partly the case.
“It’s in that direction. We want to be able to see what they are preaching, hear what they are saying. We are working together with security agencies — the DSS, Police, NSCDC and the military,” he added.
The regulation first became public earlier this month, after the Director General of the Niger State Religious Affairs, Umar Farooq, announced that preachers must obtain licences before engaging in preaching.
According to Farooq, “Any preacher who wants to preach must secure a licence between now and the next two months. All they need to do is visit our office, fill out the form, and face a panel that will screen them before they can start preaching.”
The directive has, however, drawn mixed reactions. The Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Niger State chapter, Raphael Opawoye, said the body was not officially informed of the ban.
“The Christian Association of Nigeria is not aware of the ban. We shall come up with a statement when we are officially informed,” he said.
On the other hand, Islamic scholar Uthman Siraja criticised the move, describing it as a violation of fundamental rights.
“The ban on preaching is an infringement of freedom of worship and religion. The best thing for the government to do is to invite and penalise any preacher who incites the public in the course of his preaching,” Siraja argued.
