By; OLADELE ADEDAYO, Ado-Ekiti
Notable religious leaders in Ekiti State have expressed worry that the
country may end up being destabilized if it fails to put an end to the raging issue of ethnicity and religious crises that are negatively affecting the progress of the nation.
They appealed to the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to stand its ground and curtail those threatening the sovereignty of the
Nigerian nation, by fanning the ember of religion and ethnicity.
The President, League of Imams and Alfas in the Southwest, Edo and
Delta States, Alhaji Jamiu Kewulere, the Chairman of the Christian
Association of Nigeria(CAN), Ekiti chapter, Pastor Rotimi Orikogbe and a man of God, Pastor R.O. Oso , said these in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday
during an interdenominational service held by the Nigeria Union of
Journalists(NUJ), Ekiti state.
The CAN boss lamented what he called senseless killings in Kwara,
Benue and Rivers State on the eve of the new year festivity, where
scores were killed in the midnight attacks.
He said these horrendous killings of innocent Nigerians didn’t portray
Nigeria as a country that is united , the way it was supposed to be.
“Our value system had degenerated and that is why you see people ,
particularly politicians hiding under ethnicity and religion to
perpetrate evil.
“Our situation has degenerated to a level where issue of national
interest were being fatally wounded by these two issues that had
gained traction in the minds of our people.
“When issue that was supposed to be handled frontally were being
discussed and culprits dealt with, you see our elites reading ethnic
and religious meanings to it and this is very bad.
“That is why I am tasking the new NUJ Exco in Ekiti to be united and
love one another to be able to make progress. Don’t allow money to
influence your positions, because you are the mirror of the society”,
he advised.
The chief Imam advised the federal government to put machinery in motion to ensure that every Nigerian can exercise their religious and political beliefs wherever they live without fear of molestation.
“We thank God that religious and ethnic problems are not prominent in Ekiti. All the religious leaders interrelated freely in Ekiti State.
“Myself, the Chief Imam in the entire south and our Bishops and clerics are good friends, this is the way we want our people to behave all over Nigeria.
“It is wrong and not in the interest of Almighty Allah for people to kill in the name of religion. Allah is our creator and he won’t be happy when people were killed indiscriminately”, he said.
The NUJ, Ekiti Council, Mr. Rotimi Ojomoyela, promised that he would
commence a process of reconciliation to placate those who felt aggrieved about the outcome of the union’s election held last year
December.
