Prominent Nigerian cleric and political commentator Pastor Tunde Bakare has denied mocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) or victims of the 2006 ADC airline disaster, saying his reference to the tragedy during a recent press briefing was a metaphor about leadership, not a slight.
Bakare, who leads the Citadel Global Community Church and chairs the Citadel School of Government, said at a news conference in Lagos on Sunday that his earlier comments were taken out of context by political actors and commentators.
“To those who described my statement as insensitive, I ask whether they have never used the Titanic as a metaphor to warn of danger,” he said. “My reference was not literal — it was a symbolic warning about the fleeting nature of power.”
The pastor said the controversy surrounding his remarks had been amplified by individuals seeking political advantage. He cited Senate President Godswill Akpabio’s recent “crash” metaphor on the Senate floor as an example of how such imagery had been politicised.
Bakare explained that his intention was to caution Nigeria’s political class to learn from history and to view public office as a platform for service rather than self-interest.
“Those in the cockpit of governance must remember that power is transient,” he said. “Leadership, like flight, requires skill, responsibility, and humility — not arrogance or recklessness.”
Responding to concerns that his comments might link the Citadel School of Government to partisan politics, Bakare said the institution was strictly non-partisan and focused on developing ethical leadership.
“Citadel School of Government has no political affiliation whatsoever,” he said. “It is open to all Nigerians with a desire to contribute to national transformation.”
He reaffirmed his constitutional right to political association but said his broader mission was nation-building, not partisan politics.
“My face is set like a flint toward one goal — the emergence of a New Nigeria that works for everyone,” Bakare said. “A peaceful, progressive, and prosperous nation of endless possibilities.”
