The President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Bishop Wale Oke, has vowed that Christians will continue preaching in commercial buses despite the proposed legislation seeking to prohibit evangelism in public transport.
Speaking during a church service on Sunday, Oke criticised the National Assembly over the proposed measure, declaring that members of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria would resist any attempt to stop them from carrying out what he described as a divine mandate.
The cleric insisted that preaching the gospel remains a core responsibility of Christians, stressing that no law could override God’s instruction to spread the Christian faith.
“If you want to enforce that law, make all the stadiums in Nigeria become prisons because we are coming. We will break that law. Our Master told us to go into the world and preach the gospel to every creature. We will preach in buses, we will preach everywhere because you are making evil decrees. We will rather obey God than man,” he declared.
Oke also accused lawmakers of focusing on religious activities instead of addressing pressing security challenges confronting the country.
“You don’t go after killers, kidnappers, bandits and rapists, yet you are going after people preaching the message of peace that changes lives. We will not listen to you because you are not God,” he said.
The PFN president further warned those behind the proposed legislation to reconsider their position, maintaining that Christians would continue evangelising regardless of any legal restrictions.
His comments come amid growing opposition from Christian leaders to the proposed amendment prescribing penalties for individuals who preach or engage in unsolicited religious activities inside commercial vehicles.
The controversy followed the Senate’s passage of the Federal Road Safety Corps (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which proposes a fine of N50,000 for anyone convicted of hawking, trading or preaching inside commercial vehicles.
However, the Senate has clarified that the provision is not new, explaining that the prohibition has existed under the Federal Road Safety Commission Act and the National Road Traffic Regulations since 2007.
In a statement issued by the Directorate of Media and Public Affairs in the Office of the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, the upper chamber said the ongoing amendment merely retains an existing provision and does not introduce a fresh ban on preaching in commercial buses.
Meanwhile, other prominent Christian leaders have also opposed the proposed restriction.
Founder of Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Dr Paul Enenche, argued that evangelism is a fundamental Christian obligation and warned against any policy that limits peaceful gospel preaching in public spaces.
Similarly, the Presiding Bishop of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, has consistently urged Christians to remain committed to soul winning despite perceived opposition, while the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has encouraged believers to continue sharing their faith peacefully in line with biblical teachings.
