By Ado Oyeyemi
Christian organisations have rejected a proposed amendment to the Federal Road Safety Corps Act that seeks to prohibit preaching in commercial vehicles, warning that the move could violate citizens’ constitutional rights to freedom of religion and expression.
The groups, including the Christian Council of Nigeria and the Organisation of African Instituted Churches, urged President Bola Tinubu to withhold assent to the bill and called on the National Assembly to review the contentious provision through wider consultations.
The Senate last Thursday passed the Federal Road Safety Corps (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which proposes a N50,000 fine for anyone convicted of hawking, trading or preaching inside commercial vehicles.
The legislation also prescribes a six month jail term, a fine, or both for offenders if signed into law.
The bill, which is awaiting presidential assent, is aimed at strengthening road safety enforcement and reducing activities considered capable of distracting drivers.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Christian Council of Nigeria described the inclusion of preaching among prohibited activities as disturbing, despite its support for efforts to improve safety on Nigerian roads.
The council’s General Secretary, Rev. Evans Onyemara, said the proposed law raises significant constitutional and human rights concerns by placing Christian evangelism in the same category as commercial activities.
According to him, commercial buses have for decades provided an avenue for Christians to share brief messages of hope, repentance, encouragement and prayers with willing passengers, adding that any restriction on such activities should be subjected to careful constitutional examination.
The council also faulted the proposed N50,000 fine for hawkers, arguing that it punishes people struggling to survive rather than addressing the underlying causes of poverty, unemployment and economic hardship.
It urged the Federal Government to adopt more humane measures, including the provision of designated trading areas, targeted regulations where necessary and sustainable economic empowerment programmes instead of imposing punitive sanctions.
Similarly, the Organisation of African Instituted Churches called on the President not to sign the bill in its current form, insisting that peaceful religious expression should not be criminalised.
In a statement signed by its President, Israel Akinadewo, the association described it as inappropriate to equate preaching with commercial hawking, maintaining that evangelism is protected under the constitutional rights to freedom of religion and expression.
The association noted that preaching in commercial buses has remained a recognised means of spreading messages of faith, morality, hope and peaceful coexistence across the country.
It appealed to the National Assembly to revisit the relevant provisions of the bill through broad consultations with religious organisations, civil society groups and other stakeholders to ensure that road safety objectives are achieved without undermining fundamental rights.
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While reaffirming its commitment to responsible religious conduct and the rule of law, the association encouraged preachers to carry out evangelism in ways that respect public order and urged the government to safeguard the constitutional freedoms that support Nigeria’s democratic system.
