TD President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has secured another endorsement for the 2027 presidential election, with the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) declaring its support for his bid for a second term.
The endorsement was announced during the CBCN’s 2026 Synod and International Communion of Charismatic Archbishops, Bishops and Apostles in Abuja.
At the occasion, the organisation’s President-General, Archbishop Leonard Bature Kawas, said the bishops from across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones had resolved to support Tinubu.
Kawas said the conference would continue to support the President “now,” “tomorrow” and into the 2027 election, describing the position as a formal endorsement of Tinubu’s re-election bid.
Bishops: “This House Has Endorsed Him for 2027”
According to Kawas, the bishops had assessed Tinubu’s administration and concluded that the President had demonstrated what they considered religious balance and inclusion.
“We support him now. We support him today, we support him tomorrow, and we support him for as long as he’s willing to be our president,” Kawas said.
He added that the organisation would still stand with Tinubu in 2027.
“And so it is safe to say that this house has endorsed him for the 2027 presidency,” he said.
Bishops Cite Tinubu’s Appointments and Religious Balance
The CBCN leader said Christian leaders had initially expressed concerns over Tinubu’s decision to run a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in 2023.
Tinubu selected Kashim Shettima, a Muslim from Borno State, as his running mate, creating significant opposition among sections of Nigeria’s Christian community.
Kawas, however, argued that Tinubu’s subsequent appointments demonstrated that his administration was not opposed to Christians.
He cited the appointment of George Akume as Secretary to the Government of the Federation and other Christian figures in strategic government positions as evidence of what he described as religious balance.
The bishops also praised Tinubu’s wife, Oluremi Tinubu, for her Christian background and public activities.
The 2022 “Fake Bishops” Controversy
The latest endorsement is particularly notable because of the controversy that erupted around Tinubu’s presidential campaign in July 2022, when the APC unveiled Kashim Shettima as Tinubu’s running mate.
At the unveiling ceremony in Abuja on July 20, 2022, several men dressed in clerical garments, including outfits resembling those worn by Catholic bishops, were present at the event.
Photographs of the men immediately generated controversy on social media.
Critics accusing the APC of bringing “fake bishops” to the event to create an impression of Christian support for the Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The controversy was particularly sensitive because major Christian organisations had opposed the APC’s same-faith presidential ticket.
CAN Disowned the Clerics
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) subsequently challenged the APC to identify the clerics who attended the event.
CAN said it was not represented at the unveiling and questioned the identities of the people presented as Christian leaders.
The association’s position was widely reported as an accusation that the APC had used people who were not genuine bishops or pastors to provide religious legitimacy for the controversial ticket.
The Catholic Church also distanced itself from the men in question, with its spokesman saying they were not representatives of the Catholic Church.
Tinubu’s Campaign Rejected the Allegation
Tinubu’s campaign organisation denied that the clerics were fake.
Bayo Onanuga, then Director of Media and Communication of the Tinubu campaign, said the men were genuine Christian clerics.
Onanuga claimed that they were simply not well-known names within mainstream Christian circles.
The campaign described the controversy as an orchestrated social-media distraction and insisted that the men were neither mechanics nor other artisans dressed up as bishops.
Some Accused Clerics Produced Ordination Documents
Days after the controversy erupted, some of the clerics accused of being fake appeared before journalists.
Some produced documents they said demonstrated their ordination and ownership or leadership of churches.
They also clarified that they had attended the Shettima unveiling without representing CAN.
Vanguard reported that the clerics presented ordination certificates and evidence of their ministries while insisting that they were genuine preachers.
A contemporary fact-check by P.M. News similarly concluded that some of the men labelled “fake” could be identified as genuine clerics.
However, the broader controversy over why they attended the event remained.
Allegations of Payment Added to the Controversy
The episode took another turn when one man identified as Joseph Odaudu was reported to have claimed that he was recruited to appear in clerical clothing.
Odaudu said he was promised ₦100,000 but allegedly received ₦40,000.
The report, however, concerned an individual presented as one of the alleged fake clerics.
It did not by itself establish that every cleric at the event was fake or that all were recruited in the same manner.
Four Years Later, Bishops Now Formally Endorse Tinubu
Against that backdrop, the CBCN’s 2026 declaration represents a markedly different development.
Unlike the disputed appearance of clerics at the 2022 Shettima unveiling, the latest declaration is being presented openly as an institutional endorsement by a named organisation of charismatic bishops.
The CBCN has not merely appeared at a political event; its leadership has publicly declared support for Tinubu’s 2027 re-election and explained its reasons for backing the President.
From Religious Controversy to Political Endorsement
The two episodes also demonstrate the continuing importance of Christian support in Tinubu’s political strategy.
In 2022, the APC faced intense criticism over the Muslim-Muslim ticket.
It faced criticism that the presence of unidentified clerics at the Shettima unveiling was intended to soften Christian opposition.
In 2026, a Christian organisation is publicly endorsing Tinubu and citing his appointments and relationship with Christian leaders as reasons for its support.
The political significance is therefore difficult to ignore:
“Four years after the controversy over alleged “fake bishops,” Tinubu is now receiving an explicit 2027 endorsement from an organisation calling itself the Charismatic Bishops Conference of Nigeria.”
CBCN Says Its Support Extends Beyond 2027
Kawas said the bishops’ support would not be limited to electoral politics.
He said the CBCN would continue to pray for and advocate policies of the Tinubu administration that the organisation believes will contribute to Nigeria’s development.
The endorsement, therefore, gives Tinubu another public show of support from a Christian religious constituency as political alignments ahead of the 2027 presidential election increasingly take shape.
2027 Race Takes a Religious Turn
The development comes as the 2027 presidential contest begins to generate increasingly visible endorsements from political, religious, regional and interest groups.
For Tinubu, the CBCN endorsement is significant because of the religious controversy surrounding his 2023 ticket.
The contrast between the disputed clerical appearance at the 2022 Shettima unveiling and the formal CBCN Bishops endorsement in 2026 is surreal.
It may likely fuel further debate over the evolving relationship between religion and presidential politics in Nigeria.
