Senator Orji Kalu, representing Abia North Senatorial District, has said he would resign from the All Progressives Congress (APC) if President Bola Tinubu ever disrespected the Catholic Church.

Kalu made the statement on Wednesday while appearing on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, during a discussion on the controversy surrounding a recent meeting between Tinubu and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).

The leadership of the CBCN, led by Archbishop Matthew Ndagoso, had met with Tinubu at the State House in Abuja last week, where the bishops raised concerns about economic hardship and insecurity in the country.

The meeting later triggered an exchange of words after Cardinal John Onaiyekan, former Archbishop of Abuja, said the President was unhappy with the message delivered by the bishops. Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Policy, subsequently accused the Catholic Church of supporting the opposition.

Kalu, however, defended the bishops’ decision to speak on national issues, describing them as the conscience of the nation.

“The Catholic bishops were right. If they had said anything less than what they said, they would no longer be the conscience of this country,” he said.

The former Abia State governor also dismissed suggestions that Tinubu had personally disrespected the Catholic Church, arguing that statements made by presidential aides should not automatically be interpreted as the President’s position.

“The Villa is not President Tinubu. I was a governor and I understand how communication works. President Tinubu has a very good relationship with the Catholic Church,” Kalu said.

He noted that Catholic bishops had consistently spoken truth to power regardless of the administration in office.

“What politicians cannot tell the President, the Catholic bishops will tell him because they have no political interests to protect,” he added.

On calls for the presidency to apologise to the Catholic Church, Kalu maintained that Tinubu had done nothing to warrant an apology.

“Any day President Tinubu disrespects the opposition, or the Catholic Church, I will resign from the APC,” he declared.

Kalu also defended the economic reforms of the Tinubu administration, arguing that the government had made progress in stabilising the country’s macroeconomic environment.

“The macro side of the economy has been stabilised. The exchange rate is stabilising, fuel prices are stabilising, foreign direct investments are coming in and confidence is gradually returning,” he said.

However, the senator acknowledged that conditions at the microeconomic level remained difficult.

“As a businessman, I manufacture goods, and I know the microeconomy is not doing well. President Tinubu himself knows Nigerians are suffering,” he said.

Kalu attributed much of the pressure on the microeconomy to insecurity, arguing that improved security would allow farmers to return to their farmlands and help reduce food inflation.

Turning to the 2027 general election, the senator described Tinubu as the candidate to beat, arguing that the opposition parties lack the unity required to challenge the ruling APC effectively.

“If they were united, there might be some concern, but they are not. Our party will not allow President Tinubu to lose the election. We will campaign until he wins,” he stated.