According to PM News, Primate Elijah Ayodele, the leader of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, has addressed and clarified recent comments attributed to him concerning President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s potential bid for a second term.
This follows several posts on X (formerly Twitter) quoting the cleric as saying, “If Peter Obi becomes president, war and tragedy will befall Nigeria. Tinubu is the best candidate, but he may not win.”
However, in a statement issued by his media aide, Osho Oluwatosin, Primate Ayodele stated that his remarks were misrepresented and taken out of context for political manipulation. He appealed to those spreading such misquotes to put an end to it.
He pointed out that some political figures have developed a habit of using his prophecies for propaganda, a practice he strongly condemns.
Referring to an interview he recently granted the Tribune Newspaper, Primate Ayodele clarified that he only said Tinubu remains the most viable option if the opposition candidates are Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar, as neither would be able to govern the country more effectively than Tinubu.
“To be precise, I said if Nigerians elect Peter Obi, the country will face serious misfortunes. If they choose Atiku Abubakar, the nation would be doomed. As unexpected as it may sound, Tinubu is the only one among them who should be considered for the presidency. That’s the plain truth,” the prophet said in the interview.
He emphasised that his statement was not a prediction of Tinubu’s failure or success in 2027, but rather a cautionary message aimed at guiding the president.
“It is widely known that my prophetic messages are often distorted by political interests. I urge everyone not to twist my words. I never declared that Tinubu would lose. I won’t retract my statements, but for those who are unsure about what I said, they should seek clarification rather than risk invoking divine displeasure.”
He said, “Everything I see on Twitter about Tinubu isn’t true; I only warned Tinubu about three people that can affect his second-term ambition and three things he needs to do. I know some of you might have been paid by your paymasters, but you shouldn’t misquote my statements.”
In addition, Primate Ayodele firmly denied ever claiming that Nigeria would descend into war if Peter Obi were elected president.
He advised the public to confirm any prophecy from his verified social media accounts or through his communication team to avoid spreading inaccuracies.
“If anyone is confused about any of my messages, I encourage them to contact the appropriate sources instead of misinterpreting my words. I appeal to everyone—whether they misrepresented my words intentionally or not—to stop this act immediately.”
