Former Abia State Governor and Senator representing Abia North, Orji Kalu.

Former Abia State Governor and Senator representing Abia North, Orji Kalu, on Wednesday declared that he would resign from the All Progressives Congress if President Bola Tinubu ever disrespects the Catholic bishops or the opposition.

Kalu, a former Chief Whip of the Senate, made the declaration while speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he dismissed claims that the President had insulted the Catholic Church amid recent controversy over remarks by Catholic leaders on the state of the nation.

The senator insisted that Tinubu maintained a cordial relationship with the Catholic Church, describing the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria as the conscience of the nation whose views should not be misconstrued as hostility towards the government.

He said, “Tinubu did not insult the Catholic Church. This is not the first time the Catholic Church has gone to President Tinubu. In every country, from DRC, Angola to South Africa, and anywhere, the Catholic and other churches are always the conscience of the country.

“I do not see anything wrong in what the Catholic bishops said. Since the military rule, the Catholic Bishops Conference hold its conference every year, where they talk and issue a statement about the state of the nation.

“For me, Tinubu is not an enemy to the Catholic bishops. The President has a very good relationship with the Catholic Church. Anytime they asked for an audience, he has given it to them because any president dodging Catholic bishops is dodging himself. What politicians cannot tell the president, the Catholic bishops will say it.

“It is not true. If you hear him well, he said we will have a fair contest, and he will not touch anybody. Any day President Tinubu disrespects the opposition or Catholic bishops, I will resign from the APC.”

The controversy followed recent exchanges between the Presidency and Cardinal John Onaiyekan after the cleric recounted a meeting with President Tinubu in which he said he expressed concerns over Nigeria’s worsening economic hardship and insecurity.

Following the Cardinal’s account, presidential aides publicly challenged aspects of his comments, drawing criticism from sections of the Christian community, who viewed the responses as disrespectful to both the Cardinal and the Catholic Church.

Speaking on the 2027 general election, Kalu also expressed confidence that Tinubu would secure a second term, arguing that the administration’s achievements had not been adequately communicated to Nigerians despite ongoing economic difficulties.

According to him, the ruling APC had failed to effectively market the government’s accomplishments in infrastructure, security and economic reforms.

He added, “A lot has been done by this government. We simply have not marketed those achievements well.”

Assessing the administration’s performance, Kalu said the President had achieved about 65 per cent of his targets and predicted that the rating would improve in the coming months.

“On a scale of 100, President Tinubu has done about 65 per cent. By September or October, that performance will be close to 70 per cent”, he said.

He argued that the opposition remained too fragmented to pose a serious electoral threat to the APC.