Religious and Community leaders under the umbrella of Nigeria Inter-religious Council (NIREC), gathered in Abuja, on Tuesday, to discuss the state of the nation, with focus on justice, security and good governance for peace.
NIREC chairman and Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar, who spoke at the opening ceremony of the NIREC third quarterly meeting, raised the alarm at the level of insecurity in Nigeria, expressing fear that the menace might consume Nigeria if urgent action is not taken by government.
He said that even though the insecurity is high in northern states, it is not restricted there but had spread like cancer to other states of the federation, hence the urgent need for a collaborative effort from stakeholders to tackle the issue and put Nigeria on the part of growth and development.
He identified the importance of the role of the religious and community leaders, some of whom he said, command unprecedented respect and loyalty from thousands of their followers.
He encouraged them to use the pulpit or their different platforms to preach peace, unity and brotherhood, and not to incite the people against one another for whatever reason.
He said: “Insecurity has gone beyond the North. It’s on the increase in every part of Nigeria. We witnessed one in Abuja on Monday where lives were lost. We are extremely worried at the dimension it’s going, and the earlier we come together to checkmate it, the better for us.
“In Sokoto State alone, over 100 people were killed in the past few weeks by unknown armed bandits without a trace. They enter villages and slaughter people freely and destroy property.
“The first group we buried a few weeks ago were 48 persons including women and children. Two weeks later, 44 were killed. Then 18 persons were also killed a few days after that. Some days ago, 29 persons were killed by the same armed bandits.” Co-chairman of NIREC and the president, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Samson Ayokunle, attributed the rising anger in Nigeria to bad governance.
He challenged the government to rise to the occasion and provide an opportunity for Nigerians to have a better life. Meanwhile, the executive secretary of NIREC, Fr. Cornelius Omonokhua, in his welcome remarks, encouraged the participants to have an extensive discussion on the matter of the nation and make recommendations to the government on what could enhance transformation and development of Nigeria.