•Northern bishops ask govt to seek experts’ advice to lift economy out of recession
A coalition of 22 Christian groups in
Nigeria led by National Christian Elders Forum (NCEF) on
Tuesday condemned the federal government over the declaration of
September 12 as public holiday in commemoration of Eid-el-Kabir
celebration by the Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of Supreme
Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, stating that it
smacks of usurpation of government functions.
The condemnation came barely two months
after a similar incident in which they criticised the action of the
Sultan, accusing President Muhammadu Buhari of taking instructions from
the him.
THISDAY had reported that in July 2016,
Christian organisations lampooned government over the extension of
public holiday by the presidency over the non-sighting of the moon by
the Sultan.
In a statement issued by the chairman of
NCEF Mr. Solomon Asemota (SAN), on behalf of the coalition, he stated
that it was “very improper for the head of the Islamic faith in Nigeria
to announce, declare or extend public holidays.
“We call on the federal government to
rise to its task and cease abdicating its responsibilities to the head
of a religion. We do not want what happened during the time of Abacha,
when Sultan Dasuki was dethroned by Abacha to repeat itself. It should
not be forgotten that apart from Christianity and Islam, there exist in
Nigeria various traditional religions that are the foundation of our
culture as Africans.
“The federal government should continue
to play its neutral, non-aligned role in the best interest of the
nation. Meanwhile, we await the declaration of the Eid el-Kabir public
holiday by the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” the coalition stated.
Other members of the coalition include
Nigerian Christian Graduate Fellowship; Think Tank For The Body Of
Christ; Christian Lawyers Fellowship of Nigeria; Association of
Christian Schools in Nigeria; Students Christian Movement; Christian
Professionals Forum; Ministers Prayer Network; International Christian
Embassy Jerusalem; Nigeria Evangelical Missions Association and
International Prophetic Ministerial Association (Inc. Worldwide College
of Bishops and Ministers, Africa, UK and USA).
Others are Intercessors Without Walls;
Wailing Women International; Full Gospel Businessmen Fellowship;
Nigerian Fellowship of Christian Students; University Joint Campus
Christian Fellowship; Nigerian Christian Corpers Fellowship (NCCF);
Nigerian Supreme Council For Ecclesiastical Affairs; African Association
for Ecclesiastical Affairs; The Preacher; The Messenger and Womb of
Intercession International Fellowship.
The coalition said notwithstanding its earlier warning in July, “there has been an escalation of the impropriety.”
Asemota said: “We unequivocally wish to state that it is very improper for the head of the Islamic faith in Nigeria to announce, declare, or extend public holidays. This is the function of the federal government and need not be abdicated. This kind of anomalous development has not been taken place in Nigeria until the advent of the Buhari’s administration which has gone to great length to deepen religious divide and tension in Nigeria.
Asemota said: “We unequivocally wish to state that it is very improper for the head of the Islamic faith in Nigeria to announce, declare, or extend public holidays. This is the function of the federal government and need not be abdicated. This kind of anomalous development has not been taken place in Nigeria until the advent of the Buhari’s administration which has gone to great length to deepen religious divide and tension in Nigeria.
“Again, we have no objection whatsoever
to the Muslim public holiday but our concern is that in a secular
society as enshrined in Section 10 of the constitution, the
responsibility of declaring or announcing a religious public holiday is
vested in the federal government and such responsibility is sacrosanct.”
The coalition said it was not unaware of
various intrigues and acts of impunity to “transform Nigeria from a
liberal democratic society to an Islamic theocratic state.”
The organisation “reminded the
government that religion is a very sensitive and emotional aspect of
Nigerians, sayingthe wisdom of the founding fathers of Nigeria to adopt
liberal democracy as national ideology to accommodate all the divergent
groups in the nation cannot be faulted.
“Any attempt to distort that delicate
balance in the Nigerian society shall produce nothing but destruction
and devastation as the nation is currently witnessing. There is still
time for religious extremists to desist before they push Nigeria off the
brink of the precipice,” Asemota stated.
He added that the full membership of
Nigeria in Organisation of Islamic Countries (IOC). in 1986, by the
Ibrahim Babangida military administration was tantamount to making
Nigeria an Islamic state.
He held that “the nation is yet to
resolve this unilateral imposition of one religion over the nation by an
individual. We also conclude that the present distress in the nation,
occasioned by religious intolerance and insurgency, from the development
of Boko Haram to the evolving of fanatical Muslim assailants, like the
Fulani herdsmen, derive from this unilateral and improper decision of
the Babangida administration.
“Even the sponsors and actors of the
membership of Nigeria in OIC in 1986 were aware of the illegality of
their action and as such, kept it out of public knowledge for 10 years
until 1996 when Sultan Dasuki confirmed to the Pope that Nigeria was a
full member of the OIC.
“We also wish to appeal to the
international community to remain circumspect before interfering in
religious issues in Nigeria. Even when the Pope visited Nigeria, he
ensured that he visited both Christian and Muslim leaders. We condemn,
in all totality, the recent visit of the United States Secretary of
State, Mr. John Kerry, in August. His visit was divisive, sectional and
capable of misrepresentation.
“Foreign nations should be careful not
to send the wrong signal that Nigeria is an Islamic Sultanate with the
Sultan as the Supreme Sovereign. Nigeria is not an Islamic theocratic
state. It is a democratic nation and authority is vested in the
democratically elected federal government.
“It is necessary to reiterate the call
to the 386 indigenous ethnic nationalities in Nigeria to urgently
convene a conference to examine the emerging trend and threats in the
nation and propose solutions that will sustain peace, progress and
development in Nigeria. The ethnic nationalities are the “owners’ of
Nigeria and it is their responsibility to ensure that justice, equality
and fairness prevail in this nation,” Asemota maintained.
Meanwhile, the Forum of Northern States
Pentecostal Bishops has called on President Buhari to seek experts’
advice on how to lift the nation’s economy out of recession.
Chairman of the 19 Northern States
Pentecostal Bishop Forum, Archbishop John Praise Daniel, who spoke with
State House Correspondents after a closed-doors meeting with the Vice
President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the State House, said there was sufferig in
the land.
He called on those leading the country
not to “Be afraid to look for economic experts, they should not stop to
get who can help to help in our economic recovery to ensure everything
goes on well so that this country can bounce back as a great nation that
we have always been, to ensure this country becomes that great nation
we have always dreamt of and talked about.”
He said members of the forum came to pay a courtesy call on the vice president.
He said members of the forum came to pay a courtesy call on the vice president.
He said: “We came to congratulate him
and thank the government for the efforts so far since they came in about
a year ago especially in stamping out the Boko Haram menace and in
ensuring security all over the nation.”
Daniel said they also discussed with Osinbajo the need for the nation to work together in unity, to move on in peace.
He said the threat posed by the Fulani herdsmen was also discussed with the vice president.
He said the threat posed by the Fulani herdsmen was also discussed with the vice president.
He said the forum also offered advice
and called on government to make sure that everything was done to foster
unity, peace and progress.
He said: “We are a united nation and nobody should be thinking individually but collectively of making Nigeria great. And also let the government know that yes we have agreed we are in recession, the people down there whom we led are suffering, there are cries all over the place and let the government know that whatever they can do to alleviate the sufferings.
He said: “We are a united nation and nobody should be thinking individually but collectively of making Nigeria great. And also let the government know that yes we have agreed we are in recession, the people down there whom we led are suffering, there are cries all over the place and let the government know that whatever they can do to alleviate the sufferings.
“We thank God that the president
promised he would look at the hunger Nigerians are going through and we
do believe that because the president is a man of integrity, he will
follow up with his words to ensure that the suffering of Nigerian masses
is reduced and make sure that there is enough in the country if we have
all the infrastructure working, things working.
“Agreed, we are suffering from the
effect of past misrule of past leadership. All the same we believe
Nigeria is a great nation, and we can work together with our
genuineness, our commitment and our intellectual intelligence to move
this nation forward.”
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