Muslim Group Question Use Of Church Venues For Passport Exercise In UK

The Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC) has faulted the Nigerian High Commission in London on its alleged choice of venues for the December 2025 Passport Intervention Exercise.

MPAC said the selection of exclusively church-owned facilities sabotages Nigeria’s religious diversity and violates the principle of government neutrality in public service delivery.

The group, in a statement by its Executive Chairman, Disu Kamor, said it discovered that all the published venues for the upcoming passport intervention were either Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) facilities or centres formerly established by the denomination, including locations where RCCG’s name had been removed from signage but remained the recognised owner.

It further listed the venues published by the High Commission for cities to include Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Swansea and Aberdeen, stressing that the pattern is not far from coincidence or logistical inevitability.

It also noted that the arrangement was unmistakable, deeply troubling, and inconsistent with the constitutional and moral obligation of the Nigerian government to maintain religious neutrality.

MPAC insisted that Nigerian Muslims and other citizens in the United Kingdom should never be placed in situations where they must enter a location associated with another faith tradition to access a basic national service, warning that such practices weaken the confidence and belief of its members and send a message of exclusion to segments of the diaspora community.

“This approach, whether deliberate or the result of poor judgment, is deeply insensitive,” the statement said, adding that while Nigeria’s diaspora community in the UK is religiously diverse, the venue selection suggests an “alignment” between a public institution and a single religious denomination.

MPAC demanded that the Commission provide an explanation for the choice of venues and outline measures to avoid a recurrence, and also urged the Commission to immediately review and replace the listed venues with neutral alternatives such as council halls, civic centres, community centres, school halls or other public-access locations commonly used for diaspora engagements.

The group warned that government services must not add to the burdens Nigerians abroad already face, stressing that homogeneous venue selection fuels suspicion and undermines the unity the Nigerian state is expected to promote.

It also urged the Commission to adopt a transparent venue-selection policy to ensure balance and prevent future institutional bias, and recommended engagement with a wider range of Nigerian community structures in the UK, including Muslim organisations, non-religious civic groups and interfaith platforms, to improve inclusivity.

MPAC further reaffirmed its commitment to advocating fairness and justice in all public processes affecting Nigerians.