Consul-General of Nigeria: “I’m a Muslim, I Can Never Enter a Church”
August 13, 2012 By conyeani 24 Comments

“I’m a Muslim, I can never enter a Church,” so said the Consul-General of Nigeria in New York, Mr. Habib Abba Habu, responding to complaints from Nigerians that the Consulate never responded to the deaths of five Nigerians in a tragic and ghastly accident on the 21st of July, 2012. The accident had rocked the consciousness of Americans throughout the country by its sheer ghastliness and tragedy that claimed the lives of three women and two children in New York. The news had spread like wildfire not only the mainstream media, but on broadcast television, radio and the internet. Nigerians from all over the United States and outside expressed deep sadness and felt great shock at this tragedy that befell Nigeria.
Those who died include Ms. Eucha Okafor-Mba Mcxdonald, Ms. Nnenna Obioha, Ms. Okwudiri Christina Onyekwu Epton, Miss Adaobi Ovbioha ( and Master Nwaebube (Ebube) Okafor-Mba (9).

When we started getting complaints that the Nigerian Consulate-General in New York did not once react to this tragedy, did not visit the surviving accident victims at the hospital, never replied to a letter from the President of the Arondizuogu Patriotic Union National Congress of North America (An Umbrella union of all Arondizuogu people – an Igbo ethnic group) resident in the North America, nor did they send anybody to the wake-keeping on Friday, July 10, in the Bronx, New York, I decided to get the Nigerian Consul-General, Mr. Habib Abba Habu, to respond to the allegations. It was an allegation that to me as a Nigerian I found to be totally incredulous, because I didn’t believe that a Nigerian official could be that callous, and that is before I heard Mr. Habu’s reasons for ignoring this Nigerian tragedy in America.
I called Mr. Habu several times, and after not reaching him, then sent him a text message, thus “Hi, have called several times to get your part that the consulate refused to play any role in the ghastly death of five Nigerians in new york. Thanks. Chika Onyeani.” After not receiving a reply, I called Mr. Habu’s secretary, who said he was on the other line. I explained to her why I was calling and she promised that he would call me back immediately he got off the phone. For sure, Mr. Habu called back.

I explained to him the reason for my call, that I wanted to find out what Nigerians in the New York area were saying, that the Consulate did not react to the tragic death of five Nigerians which made national news in America, that he didn’t visit or send his representative to visit the surviving victims of the accident, and that he didn’t participate in the wake-keeping on Friday, July 10th. Before I could even finish, Mr. Habu shot back at me and angrily stated, “Mr. Onyeani, I am a Muslim, I can never enter a church.” I couldn’t believe my ears. I said to him, “Mr. Habu, you are the Consul-General of Nigeria, not the Consul-General of Nigerian Muslims, and your predecessors, whether Muslims or Christians or any other religion, have taken to visit Nigerians whether in the church or in the mosque.” He replied, “Well, they are they, and I am me, I can never enter a church.”
I said to Mr. Habu, “I don’t really believe you are saying this to me, and I am going to be writing about this.” “Well,” he replied, “I don’t really care if you write about it, Chief Onyeani.” Then he thought again, and said to me, “maybe I didn’t say it the right way.” As to sending somebody to represent him at the wake-keeping, which was not even held at a church but at a center at Coop City in the Bronx in New York, Mr. Habu alleged that he sent somebody. But Rev. David Kayode, who worked tirelessly with the family and the people of Arondizuogu in securing a place and who most of the New York media called to find out what was going on with the funeral arrangements, disputed Mr. Habu’s assertion because he was the individual who read the names of all the government officials and politicians who were there. He rattled off some of the people, apart a huge number of Nigerians who showed up, including representatives of the Office of the Bronx Borough President, New York Police Commissioner’s office, Human Resources Administration, New York State Assembly people and several others.

Checking further to make sure that there was no mistake regarding Mr. Habu’s assertion, I called Mr. Nnamdi Akamnonu, President of the Arondizuogu Patriotic Union National Congress of North America. He stated that in the course of the wake-keeping, somebody came and told him that there was somebody from the Consulate waiting outside who wanted to speak to him. He said he asked them to walk the individual in, but the individual refused to walk in. He then decided to go and meet with the person. Said Mr. Akamnonu, “I saw a young man in shorts with a tee shirt on, and I invited him in, but he said he didn’t want to come in, that he had a message from the Consulate, that they had received my letter.” He said that was all the message he had to deliver and didn’t have a written reply to my letter to the Consul-General, informing him that the wake-peeing was going to be at Coop City in the Bronx.” By the way, Coop City is not a church.

It is very hard to believe that a Nigerian official who is sent abroad to represent the Nigerian government, especially an individual who is appointed Consul-General with the responsibility to represent all Nigerians, should abdicate to perform his duties based on his religious beliefs. It is incomprehensible why Mr. Habib Habu should believe that only in a mosque would he be able to perform his duties, and the sad part is that if Mr. Habu had taken a very minor interest in the very tragic deaths of his fellow Nigerians, he would have discovered that the viewing of the bodies were in a funeral home, while the wake-keeping was not in a church.

If Mr. Habu didn’t know that he would be representing all Nigerians in his post, it is beyond arrogance that he would have accepted the post of Consul-Genral of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, representing more than the 160 million Nigerians in Nigeria. It is like saying that the president he represents in America, President Goodluck Jonathan, can never enter a mosque because he is a Christian. Imagine the uproar that would envelope Nigeria should such an utterance came out of his mouth. But Mr. Habu said it because he could because of where he comes from, but other Nigerians of other faiths be damned.

Below is the accident site, the flyer for the wakekeeping and the letter to the Consul-General from the President of the Arondizuogu Patriotic Union.
source:http://africansuntimes.com/2012/08/consul-general-of-nigeria-im-a-muslim-i-can-never-enter-a-church/

pls mod this thread have to move to the front page!, the world need to read how we mix religion with diplomatic service, politics etc, is dis mr habu a consul-genral tio Nigerian muslims or Nigeria?

Can Sahara Reporters pick this up? This is very sick.

Nigerian christians will say the same thing too sha. Nigeria is divided on all fronts: christian, muslim, igbo, yoruba, hausa, rich, poor....sad and insensitive.

Let us respect the man's religion. It takes a liberal christian or muslim to do this. If he sent a representative with a personal statement then no harm done.

aryzgreat: Consul-General of Nigeria: “I’m a Muslim, I Can Never Enter a Church”

[b]I explained to him the reason for my call, that I wanted to find out what Nigerians in the New York area were saying, that the Consulate did not react to the tragic death of five Nigerians which made national news in America, that he didn’t visit or send his representative to visit the surviving victims of the accident, and that he didn’t participate in the wake-keeping on Friday, July 10th. Before I could even finish, Mr. Habu shot back at me and angrily stated, “Mr. Onyeani, I am a Muslim, I can never enter a church.” I couldn’t believe my ears. I said to him, “Mr. Habu, you are the Consul-General of Nigeria, not the Consul-General of Nigerian Muslims, and your predecessors, whether Muslims or Christians or any other religion, have taken to visit Nigerians whether in the church or in the mosque.” He replied, “Well, they are they, and I am me, I can never enter a church.”
I said to Mr. Habu, “I don’t really believe you are saying this to me, and I am going to be writing about this.” “Well,” he replied, “I don’t really care if you write about it, Chief Onyeani.” Then he thought again, and said to me, “maybe I didn’t say it the right way.” [/b]

Ok, soon as I got to the end of this Paragraph I stopped reading.

While I sympathize with the family and loved ones of the deceased, and while I acknowledge that the staff of the Nigerian Consulate in New York are some of the most unprofessional beings I have ever encountered in my life, this story sounds farfetched.

My Opinion.

kingoflag:

Ok, soon as I got to the end of this Paragraph I stopped reading.

While I sympathize with the family and loved ones of the deceased, and while I acknowledge that the staff of the Nigerian Consulate in New York are some of the most unprofessional beings I have ever encountered in my life, this story sounds farfetched.

My Opinion.

we await mr habu's response to this allegations, this story is already flying around and people are calling for his re-call back to nigeria.

Why must he go to church? you ibos need to get a life, if he were to be ibo would you have forced him to go to the mosque, you get as much as you give, you want to tell me that a consular must and have been visiting all bereaved families in the US? you are not even nigerians.

2mch: Let us respect the man's religion. It takes a liberal christian or muslim to do this. If he sent a representative with a personal statement then no harm done.

“I saw a young man in shorts with a tee shirt on, and I invited him in, but he said he didn’t want to come in, that he had a message from the Consulate, that they had received my letter.” He said that was all the message he had to deliver and didn’t have a written reply to my letter to the Consul-General, informing him that the wake-peeing was going to be at Coop City in the Bronx.” By the way, Coop City is not a church.

the above sound like representation? well until we hear from mr habu, we can't judge but to display religious bigotry while on official assignment is un-acceptable

aryzgreat:


“I saw a young man in shorts with a tee shirt on, and I invited him in, but he said he didn’t want to come in, that he had a message from the Consulate, that they had received my letter.” He said that was all the message he had to deliver and didn’t have a written reply to my letter to the Consul-General, informing him that the wake-peeing was going to be at Coop City in the Bronx.” By the way, Coop City is not a church.

the above sound like representation? well until we hear from mr habu, we can't judge but to display religious bigotry while on official assignment is un-acceptable

As long as all this was not recorded, nothing can be done. He can even sue this guy for slander. Quite frankly this is the first time I have heard Nigerian's looking for the support of their consul. I can bet most of the victims are American citizens. If they are, the guy doesn't owe them his presence. Anyway, RIP to the victims

Goddess12: Why must he go to church? you ibos need to get a life, if he were to be ibo would you have forced him to go to the mosque, you get as much as you give, you want to tell me that a consular must and have been visiting all bereaved families in the US? you are not even nigerians.

you must be a blind man, please read the write-up again, the wake keeping did not hold in a church, this accident was widely reported in the media, and our so-called consul-general could not reply a simple mail sent to his office bearing in mind the tragic loss to nigeria. A condolence message from the consul-general's office would av calm strayed nerves even if he didn't come.

We need to quickly lunch "I support the consular" or "consular Abu appreciation day" campaign to counter what this kobokobo are trying to do.
I can get some friends in NY to set this up and get there myself on Friday.

Dont know what the big deal is or why the family/organization would even write the consul

I mean sad they died but err..... what did they expect him to do? People of different nationalities die.... I dont expect consuls from every country to attend church services. To me they are no different then other American families THE TRAGEDY is not they are Nigerian or Igbo.. its a tragedy because they were a family something like this can happen to anyone....

Na wa for the flyer-----"igbo tragedy"

He shouldn't have said that tho as a politician you gotta be sensitive to EVERYTHING.

aryzgreat: pls mod this thread have to move to the front page!, the world need to read how we mix religion with diplomatic service, politics etc, is dis mr habu a consul-genral tio Nigerian muslims or Nigeria?

if you re interested in removing him fine...but let me ask you a question how many life were lost back home daily...

aryzgreat:

you must be a blind man, please read the write-up again, the wake keeping did not hold in a church, this accident was widely reported in the media, and our so-called consul-general could not reply a simple mail sent to his office bearing in mind the tragic loss to nigeria. A condolence message from the consul-general's office would av calm strayed nerves even if he didn't come.

abeg he is not after your fake 419 business abi let me ask u punks how many iive's do we loss daily back home in Nigeria abeg go sleep.

@ai119, That's how quick we Я̩̥̊ to fight ourselves instead of uniting for a common goal. Smh*
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Abu or whteva his name is unfit to hold that post. He ΐƨ callous and stupid, (Seun better don't hide this comment).sometines I wonder if this pple Я̩̥̊ learned at all, why D̶̲̥̅̊o we have the word diplomacy?? I bliv a yoruba or an igbo christian wouldn't have hesitated to reach across to the deceased family if they were muslims.
Evryday these socalled reps kip slipping cocks in us, showing us hw selfish they can be and telling it all to those who can read in between the lines that they want a break-up, I wonder why this country still holds.
I as a catholic hav never been to a mosque b4, but I remember paying a visit to one -Yewa north Central mosque ayetoro for presentation of gifts et al when my batch corps members were abt to passout..Altho I waited till their prayers was over befor I ws ushered in with my team. I was the C.L.O of that Zone, I represented all the over 300 corps members in that zone.. Muslims, Christians, Atheists, Paganists et all. Yet this baga is there feeding on tax payers money, living ayé-foreign and playing the religion card, may Dionsyus wrath befall him. IDIAT.

Those christains should be happy he didnt come otherwise who knows what would have been in his pocket . At least they were safe untill the end of the programme

The man should be sacked

2mch: Let us respect the man's religion. It takes a liberal christian or muslim to do this. If he sent a representative with a personal statement then no harm done.

No. An ambassador or a consul's job is to act for and as the country. This is a man's bigotry being placed before his responsibility. He is unsuited and should be recalled immediately. If he cannot act with compassion with Christians who've died in a horrible accident, would he be compassionate if they came to him with their problems?

Moreover, there is no teaching in mainstream Islam that prohibits the entering of a church, meaning he is either lying or a radical, either of which is just cause for dismissal.

2mch: Let us respect the man's religion. It takes a liberal christian or muslim to do this. If he sent a representative with a personal statement then no harm done.

hey guy 4get abt dat ish, dis man fuckup big tym. I am a muslim bt wat dis man dis is nt a muslim act, he mess up big tym, its ppl lyk dem dat giv islam bad image. Dont muslim go to church to attend their frnds or relative weddin in church. Dis man is jus a bigot and need to call bac period. Is he representin nigerians or muslim? Dis hausa ppl self, both d educated and d illitrate think alike. Mtwssss

2mch: Let us respect the man's religion. It takes a liberal christian or muslim to do this. If he sent a representative with a personal statement then no harm done.

hey guy 4get abt dat ish, dis man fuckup big tym. I am a muslim bt wat dis man dis is nt a muslim act, he mess up big tym, its ppl lyk dem dat giv islam bad image. Dont muslim go to church to attend their frnds or relative weddin in church. Dis man is jus a bigot and need to call bac period. Is he representin nigerians or muslim? Dis hausa ppl self, both d educated and d illitrate think alike. Mtwssss

Of course he represents islam. This shows how compassionate they are. Aren't they part of our family again?

I agree that there was no reason for him to be present or even send someone in his place, a letter would have been enough. But the reason he gave is enough for him to be recalled. You are supposed to represent the entire country and all her people. Should a Christian paramedic not help some one because he is Muslim.

We are not one!! Let divide dis useless country

Imagine a f.ool that is made an ambassador to a developed society like US. Somebody that does have the IQ of reception class toddlers in england. He should be an ambassador to saudi or yemen,where people are not evolutionarily rational.

ai119: abeg he is not after your fake 419 business abi let me ask u punks how many iive's do we loss daily back home in Nigeria abeg go sleep.

if boko haram strikes and GEJ does'nt condole the bereaved through Doyin okupe or Abati or physical presence ur likes will cry murder and shout impeachment! Our consular general is there to attend to issues that affect nigerians abroad and should not be seen towing the line of religious fanatism! He represents nigerians not muslims in USA! am not suprised, the emir of madalla did the same after christians were killed last christmas by boko haram, he did not visit the church nor send delegate untill GEJ queried him. So much for religion.

Goddess12: Why must he go to church? you ibos need to get a life, if he were to be ibo would you have forced him to go to the mosque, you get as much as you give, you want to tell me that a consular must and have been visiting all bereaved families in the US? you are not even nigerians.

It beats my imagination dat we still av people wit shallow minds like you. Should everything be about religion, tribe or sect. If u read d msg properly u will deduce dat none of dis activities were held in d church. Wats d duty of d consular-generall?. Its people like u dat gets to an accident scene and find out d victims are not ur tribe or religion and walk away.

Goddess12: Why must he go to church? you ibos need to get a life, if he were to be ibo would you have forced him to go to the mosque, you get as much as you give, you want to tell me that a consular must and have been visiting all bereaved families in the US? you are not even nigerians.

You and that consular are familiar but in character and in Boko Haram. That fool need to be recall fast and thoroughly check,people like him might be the real sponsor of Boko Haram.Divide this useless country.

sbeezy8: Dont know what the big deal is or why the family/organization would even write the consul

I mean sad they died but err..... what did they expect him to do? People of different nationalities die.... I dont expect consuls from every country to attend church services. To me they are no different then other American families THE TRAGEDY is not they are Nigerian or Igbo.. its a tragedy because they were a family something like this can happen to anyone....

Na wa for the flyer-----"igbo tragedy"

He shouldn't have said that tho as a politician you gotta be sensitive to EVERYTHING.

@ d boldened did u read the story well? d wake keeping did not hold in d church! yea they are not different from other americans that die daily but they are nigerians in foreign land! the consular general is like a "father figure" to all nigerians over there and shouldn't be seen displaying religious bigotry. Its not only when nigerian commit crime that the consular is informed, when such tragedy befell his country men he should be informed and courtesy demands he write to the bereaved. They were not asking for money to fly back the dead, the town union have taken care of that.

hey guy 4get abt dat ish, dis man fuckup big tym. I am a muslim bt wat dis man dis is nt a muslim act, he mess up big tym, its ppl lyk dem dat giv islam bad image. Dont muslim go to church to attend their frnds or relative weddin in church. Dis man is jus a bigot and need to call bac period. Is he representin nigerians or muslim? Dis hausa ppl self, both d educated and d illitrate think alike. Mtwssss




We are not muslims by name but by conciously ensuring we are guided by the Quran and Hadith of the prophet. Go figure out your spiritual obligation as a muslim.

To the ambassador at least he can commiserate with the bereaved family by mail, visiting etc

The animal is a boko haram,representing nigerian terrorist government in new york.
Animal wear agbada..

My Muslim friends came to church in large numbers for my 1st child's dedication - I was pleasantly surprised

Nigerians are backward because they are religiously indoctrinated. Christianity and islam are agents of darkness in nigeria.

The oyinbos and arabs use them to keep africans in the state of suspended animation. A zombie like and hypnotised state where reasoning has gone with the wind.