A bill to create the National Council of Christian Education was rejected by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria on the grounds that it would be in violation of sections 10 and 42(3) of the Nigerian Constitution.
The bishops instructed the Christian Association of Nigeria, which was the original proponent of the bill at the National Assembly, to advocate for legislation that resolutely addresses unprovoked attacks on Christians in the North, among other issues, rather than one that violated Nigeria’s secular character.
In a statement, the CBCN’s President, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, and Secretary, Bishop Donatus Ogun, rejected the proposed legislation.
The bill was sponsored by Representatives Rimamde Kwewum, Beni Lar, Yusuf Tajudeen, John Dyegh, Solomon Bob, and Benjamin Mzondu. It aims to develop, regulate, and approve curricula/contents at all levels of Christian education.
The bill was created, among other things, to accredit courses offered by Christian theological institutions and certify teachers of basic and secondary levels of Christian religion education.
However, the Catholic bishops bemoaned the lack of an exemption in the legislation for seminaries and other religious institutions run by different Christian denominations all over the federation.
The bishops cited Section 42 (3) of the 1999 Constitution to support their argument that the bill violated the rights of these various Christian denominations to impart knowledge and form people in accordance with their own doctrines.
The bill, they continued, “is incompatible with the secular character of the Nigerian State as enshrined in Section 10 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The bishops asserted that governments at the federal and state levels “must respect the juridical principles that govern the relationship between the state and the church” because neither have adopted any religion as their official religion and cannot do so.
The bishops stated that the idea of pursuing a bill “to regulate religious studies in secular schools came up during the education summit organised in 2019 by the Association of Christian Schools in Nigeria, an organisation of primarily Pentecostal private school owners and some protestant denominations.”
They noted that the bill’s original intent and conception did not include any mention of theological institutions or any attempt to regulate theological issues.
After discussing the proposal, the bishops revealed that CAN had decided to move forward with it by asking the lawmakers to support the bill, claiming that certain provisions had been added at various points that were not in the church’s best interests.
They continued, “Due to our doctrinal differences, the bill is unnecessary and impracticable. The government is receiving our legal autonomy in educational matters.
They also urged CAN to conduct “a proper needs assessment to identify the needs of Nigerian Christians that would necessitate government support. It is counterproductive to ask for the establishment of a Council for Christian Education simply because Muslims already have one.
