Ikwue, who will turn 71 in June, believes that too much attachment to religion promotes laziness.
An engineer, who combines music with property development, Ikwue said he felt that Nigerians often insult God when they ask for “daily bread” from Him.
Speaking with our correspondent in Oturkpo, Benue State, on Sunday, the septuagenarian argued that God had already offered everyone Daily Bread by giving them the intellect to create ideas and work.
He said, “I believe in God. But, I totally disbelieve in religion, I will like to play down religion. If I had my way, I would ban religion completely from Africa for the continent to make progress.”
Ikwue suggested that the first pronouncement of any serious government should be to ban religion.
He said, “If it rained, you didn’t go to the farm but went to church; at the end of church service you pray and say give us this day our Daily Bread. You are insulting God.
“There is no year when harmattan does not change to rainy season. God requires no man to remind him and He has never failed to do his duty. But, after it rained and dried up, you didn’t go to farm, you are asking God for food. He will laugh at your stupidity.
“There is no day that the sun will not rise and set. I believe in a God that has expressed Himself clearly; he has never failed. Every year, all the mangoes will fruit in their time throughout the entire country.
“There has never come a time when it is time for them to fruit and they don’t fruit. But, look at you black man; you are unable to pluck these mangoes. You take a stone trying to pluck one and you pluck 16 unripe ones.
“They will waste because you are not using your head. Give us this day our Daily Bread; He gave you Daily Bread and you wasted it.”
The musician, who has just released 14 out of his new 45-track album, Wulu Wulu, said, “too much talking instead of working” would get Nigeria nowhere.
He said, “Those who said God spoke to them had lied to you; you became gullible and fell victim. You deserve what you are getting because you are not using your head; they are going to take all your money.
“Don’t go give a cheque of N300m to a church and expect that God is so happy and clapping because He has not seen money. So, money will take me to heaven or it is meant to stop on this earth?
“Those who will not listen to people like me will pay the price; they will remain gullible and the price is remain in your poverty because you are not thinking or using your head.”
He added, “The banning of religion will not take God out of existence but it will take distractive people out of our lives. Can you imagine how many times people go to places of worship in a week? They go to listen and contribute nothing.
“They don’t even raise their hands to ask questions; it is a university you never graduate from for the rest of your life. The amount of waste in terms of human power is a lot, if you quantify it.
“I need for the government to become bold and take religion out of itself completely. Why pay for people to go to Jerusalem and Mecca? The Jews who collect this money in their country invest it there, don’t they?
“Roads and schools can only be built by money, not prayers. Why are you giving people this money for air tickets to go and pray in Mecca or Jerusalem when you can use it to build the roads?”
Among Ikwue’s popular hits, which made waves in the 80s and early 90s, were Cock Crow at Dawn, Otachikpokpo, Amen, Sill Searching, and Mariama.
He took a break from recording albums and went into property development, designing and contracting for over a decade.
Ikwue bounced back last year with Wulu Wulu, the title track of a new album making waves again.
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