By PETER ANOSIKE

A pan-Nigerian pressure group, Vanguard for Good Governance, has appealed to the south eastern zone of the Network of Evangelical Bishops of Nigeria (NEBU), to focus on its calling of evangelism instead of meddling in partisan politics.

Speaking while reacting to a statement recently issued by the clerical group, titled “Peter Mbah: Just Go Now In Your Interest,” and signed by the Acting Secretary of the group, Bishop Emmanuel Ani, the Convener of Vanguard for Good Governance, Dr. Sylvester Eze, said that NEBU has clearly deviated from its primary purpose of spreading the message of Christ and winning souls and now intentionally delving into partisan politics.

According to him, the recent statement of the body of clergies and all the threats therein were clearly not clerical but raw, wicked politics, unbecoming of “men of God.”

He said that NEBU was now functioning as the official mouthpiece of Labour Party in Enugu State.

According to him, if the bishops want to play politics, they should remove their cassocks and throw their hats into the ring, instead of throwing side punches.

However, he said that even if they continued to issue statements on a daily basis, it would not stop governor Peter Mbah who was already focused on transforming the lives of the good people of Enugu State, as well as the economy of the state from achieving his vision.

Speaking further, he said that if the bishops were knowledgeable enough, they would have known that they would not be commenting on the issues that were before the court.

According to him, the interest of the bishops is on what they would get, instead of the good of the overall people of Enugu State which governor Mbah was working towards.

“There is a saying that the hood does not make the monk and that is exactly what we are seeing in the actions and utterances of the Network of Evangelical Bishops of Nigeria who, unfortunately, are now making more political statements than the politicians .They have left a noble and sacred calling of evangelism and now delving into partisan politics. You all can see that they are now acting as the official mouthpiece of Labour Party in Enugu State but Governor Peter Mbah is not in any way perturbed. He is a man on a mission to rescue Enugu State from grinding poverty and backwardness. So he would not allow himself to be distracted by those who do not share in his vision of a working and thriving Enugu State.”

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