The Concerned Christian Youth Forum has urged Niger State Governor, Umar Bago, to withdraw the new religious preaching law recently introduced by his administration, insisting that the state’s pressing challenges lie in insecurity, poverty and underdevelopment, not in regulating sermons.
The forum, in a statement signed by its convener, Paul Adama, on Wednesday, described the law as “ill-advised, discriminatory and oppressive,” stressing that it violates the constitutional right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
The law, as announced by the state government, requires preachers to submit their sermon notes for approval before delivering them in public, obtain licences through a screening process, and get certified within two months.
The government said the policy would be enforced with the collaboration of security agencies including the DSS, Police, Civil Defence and the military.
Defending the policy during a TV appearance, Governor Bago maintained that the measure was not a ban on evangelism but a safeguard against inciting or anti-government messages.
However, the forum insisted the law amounted to religious censorship. “This is nothing short of a gross violation of the fundamental human rights of the people. It relates to their freedom of thought and religion, which is enshrined in Sections 38 and 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” the statement read.
The group further cited international charters such as Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which protect religious freedom and prohibit undue interference by governments.
It warned that religion remains an ultra-sensitive issue in Nigeria and cautioned the Bago administration against inflaming tensions with such policies.
“We stand for religious sanity and denounce every form of inflammatory speech or religious incitement. However, we appeal to the government of Niger State to jettison forthwith the law subjecting preachers to mandatory licensing and requiring sermon notes for verification,” the forum added.
Beyond religious matters, the group asked the state government to direct its energy toward addressing worsening insecurity, rising poverty, poor infrastructure and developmental gaps across Niger State.
“Tackling poverty, insecurity, poor infrastructure, and underdevelopment should be the concerns of any well-meaning government and not stifling religious freedom,” the forum maintained.
