Pascal Arogorn Ibe
There is an indication the Department of State Services (DSS) may have rescinded its decision to invite fiery Catholic priest and spiritual director of Adoration Ministry Enugu, Nigeria, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka to Abuja for interrogation.
Mbaka had last Sunday told worshippers at the Adoration Ground that operatives of the DSS visited the church to deliver the letter of invitation but did not meet him.
The operatives were said to have been told to come on Monday when they would meet the priest.
But checks at the Adoration Ground by The Nation on Tuesday showed the secret security operatives did not show up on Monday neither did they come on Tuesday to deliver their letter.
This, it was learnt, is fueling speculations that the DSS may have dropped the summons.
One of the security men at the Emene ground, who preferred anonymity, told our correspondent that Fr. Mbaka was in office on Monday and Tuesday but did not see anyone with such invitation letter.
“I have been here since yesterday and I have not seen anyone coming to deliver any letter. Father (Mbaka) has been in his office. He is not running away.
“So, anyone who wants to see him is free. But, we have not seen anyone coming to deliver any letter to him,” the man said.
Details of why the intelligence unit had wanted to summon the priest were not stated but it might not be unconnected with Mbaka’s criticism of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in recent times.
The priest recently said God had rejected the President and unhappy with his leadership.
But the Catholic Diocese of Enugu has said that it would only react to the invitation by the DSS if it sees its contents.
Spokesman of the diocese, Rev. Fr. Benjamin Achi, said: “Mbaka is our priest and we would do anything to protect him. But in this case, we cannot talk about people we don’t know and didn’t see.
“All we know about it was what Fr Mbaka said that the DSS came. He didn’t see them.
“Since that time, we have not seen them. I was with Fr Mbaka throughout Monday and nobody came to give him any invitation.
“So, we have nothing to say for now because we need to know who those people really are because Fr Mbaka didn’t see them. If they had come again, we would have insisted on seeing them”.
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