The Bishop of the Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, has dismissed appeals to run for the office of President, stating that he will not make a good president.
He stated this during an address at the 8th House of Justice Summit held in Kaduna State.
“A lot of people have been saying to me in the last 30 years, ‘Come and contest elections. Come and contest the presidency of Nigeria’.
“Oga, make I finish with parish work, first. Because if I were under that illusion — a lot of people have told me, ‘We will pay for you. You don’t have to pay, because we believe you will make a good president.’
“But I know that I will not make a good president, because good presidents are not what you’re looking for,” the cleric stated.
Kukah argued that in politics, Nigerians were not looking for “holy people” or “good men”.
“Because what do you mean by good?” he queried.
He further expressed sadness over what he described as members of the judiciary and Catholic priests getting sucked into politics.
“I am saddened by the fact that the judiciary has now found itself being sucked into politics,” he said, although he did not elaborate on the nature of political involvement.
“I would have also been sad — and I’m also sad — to the extent that even us who are priests in the church, we are getting sucked into politics because you will never come out the same.
“You go to wrestle with a pig inside poto-poto (mud). You may defeat the pig, but you cannot go around showing yourself to see what you look like,” Kukah added.
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