Bus Preaching Bill: CAN’s rejection Is admission of guilt -MURIC

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has accused the South-West zone of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) of backing those who preach inside commercial buses.

The organisation said it reached the conclusion based on a statement issued by CAN on Friday, in which the association opposed the FRSC-sponsored bill seeking to ban preaching inside commercial buses.

In a statement on Saturday, the Executive Director of the Islamic human rights organisation, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, said CAN’s rejection of the bill amounted to an admission of guilt.

“The South-West Chairman of CAN, Bishop Barnabas Akinsanya, issued a statement yesterday, Friday, July 24, 2026, in which he rejected the bill seeking to ban preaching inside commercial buses.

“This is very disappointing. It is sad to see a parent body toeing the same path of perversion taken by its offshoots. By taking this position and failing to summon the courage to guide and correct its erring members, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has abdicated its rightful status in loco parentis.

“We are not surprised in any way. In fact, we had our doubts when two Christian groups—the Christian Council of Nigeria and the Organisation of African Instituted Churches—spoke out during the week. We had a strong feeling that CAN was behind it all. Now that the wind has blown, we have seen the ruff of the hen. It has always been CAN.

“In our statement issued on July 20, 2026, under the caption, ‘Opposition to Bus-Preaching Bill Exposes Selfish Agenda of Christian Leaders,’ we identified Christian leaders as those behind bus preaching, but we stopped short of mentioning CAN by name.

“Yet we knew this must be one of CAN’s shenanigans. We know the real culprit now that CAN has openly revealed itself. CAN is the sponsor, the employer, and the enabler of bus preachers,” Akintola said.

The MURIC Director noted that CAN had justified its opposition by claiming that the proposed legislation could restrict citizens’ constitutional rights.

According to him, CAN was focusing on the rights of a single preacher while ignoring the rights of the majority of commuters in the bus, including passengers who may be resting, students reading their lecture notes, business people planning their next engagements, and others.

Akintola said: “Is the single preacher the only one who has constitutional rights? What about the 17 or more other passengers in the bus whose rights are being infringed upon by that one preacher? Can the rights of one preacher override those of every other passenger?

“CAN is turning the principle of constitutional rights on its head. Besides, when the bus preacher commands everyone to ‘Close your eyes as we pray in Jesus’ name,’ does that instruction include the driver as well?

“The normal situation inside a commercial bus is that there are between 14 and 18 passengers. The bus preacher is only one person. How can one person’s rights rank above those of all the other passengers, including the driver, who must remain focused on the road?

“We put it to CAN that the correct constitutional position is that one person’s rights end where another person’s rights begin. It is a well-known legal principle that personal freedom has limits. As the popular saying goes, ‘Your liberty to swing your fist ends where my nose begins.’

“It simply means you are free to do as you wish, but you cannot hurt or inconvenience other people. Yet that is exactly what CAN wants its bus preachers to do to Nigerians. A preacher is free to preach, but in designated places of worship, churches, or Christian assemblies. That is the ideal position. Instead, this religious body wants its preachers to be above the law—reckless, lawless, uncontrollable, and ungovernable. That must not be allowed.

“CAN is inviting chaos. We warn that if this overzealous group has its way, Muslims across the country, who have silently tolerated these excesses, may have no option but to confront bus preachers who make life unbearable for them inside commercial buses every day.

“If Christians prevent lawmakers from enacting laws capable of making Nigeria a peaceful society for all, law-abiding and civilised citizens who want the best for this country will rise to the occasion and do what is necessary. We will defend our right to decent living and our right to peace of mind.

“The ideal situation is for Christians to preach inside Christian evangelical vehicles, not in commercial buses conveying people of different faiths. The same should apply to Muslims and traditional worshippers. However, we all know that those two groups do not preach inside commercial buses. Christians appear to enjoy imposing their religion on others. We say no to the imposition of one faith on people of other faiths.

“We urge CAN leaders to pay special attention to Titus 2:1-8: ‘But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love…’ That is where their leadership role should be properly demonstrated.”

Akintola therefore urged the Senate to proceed with the bill seeking to ban preaching inside commercial buses and called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reject what he described as CAN’s attempt to intimidate the Presidency.