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Reintroduce Religious Studies In Schools, CAN Tells FG
The Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Oyo State branch, Pastor Benjamin Akanimu, has urged government at all levels to reintroduce Christian Religious Studies in primary, secondary and higher institutions.
Akanmu made the call while speaking on the significance of Easter, in an interview with newsmen in Ibadan, yesterday.
He said this would go a long way to help the young ones to know about God early in their life as they pursue their academic dreams.
He said this will also ultimately bring peace to the society, as the students grow with the fear of God.
Akanmu urged Christians to have faith in the power that resurrected Jesus Christ from the dead, live patiently and trust in God despite their plights.
“If Jesus didn’t resurrect, we will still be in sin, the Jewish leaders chose to make up the story that it never happened, but on the third day after his death He rose, today He is alive and reigns eternally.
“For broken homes, the neglected, betrayed, bereaved, prisoners, sick, among others, can be restored by the power of His resurrection, the same power that raised Jesus is available for us today, if we can embrace Him,” he said.
Also speaking, the Catholic Bishop of Oyo Diocese, Most Rev. Emmanuel Badejo, urged Christians to emulate Jesus who laid down His life for the redemption of man.
“Easter Sunday changes the history of humanity, for the righteous, death is a mere passageway, not the end, death will not have the final word, but love and God will; Jesus conquered the devil, death, sin and darkness.
“We must emulate Jesus and live sacrificially; our leaders must similarly make sacrifice for the people, no leadership has legitimacy if it doesn’t make sacrifice and serve citizens.
“Our government must do everything possible to protect Nigerians, secure freedom for the kidnapped, deal with all forms of killings,
“We suffer heavy loss of lives and the authorities do little about it, this must change.
“All Nigerians should believe in Christ and never lose hope, don’t commit suicide, do not despair, God conquered death so what else can He not do for us, let’s always love one another irrespective of tribe, religion or status,” he said.
Badejo further urged Christians to spare a thought for fellow citizens suffering from all manner of insecurity, especially in the North and other places, even as they celebrate the season.
“I express solidarity with fellow Nigerians who are victims of clashes, bloodshed, killings, kidnappings, other tragedies, I pray fervently for a turnaround for peace and harmony all over Nigeria,” he said.
In his remarks, Rev. Alex Okoye of All Saints Anglican Church, Koroduma, Nasarawa, called on the government to emulate the selfless life of Jesus Christ and offer selfless service to the masses.
Okoye urged them to also show love and compassion to the masses by fulfilling the promises they made during electioneering.
“Easter shows that Jesus Christ has power over death, grave, it gives Christians hope, it shows that he who believes in Christ has eternal life; Jesus Christ is the resurrection and life.
“As we celebrate Christ’s resurrection, I pray that everything dead in Nigeria comes back to life in Jesus name, amen,” he said.
It would be recalled that Easter is observed by Christians three days after Good Friday, it commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; churches in Ibadan metropolis joined their counterparts to celebrate the day.
However, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has felicitated with Nigerians across the country on the Easter celebration, and charged the Federal Government to ensure safety of lives, property and free movement of people.
The President of CAN, Rev. Samson Ayokunle revealed this in a statement by the Special Assistant, Media and Communications to the CAN president, Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, last Saturday in Abuja.
Ayokunle urged all Nigerians to imbibe the teachings of Jesus Christ so as to drive out vices such as hate speech, bigotry, corruption, banditry and terrorism.
“Kidnapping, increasing wave of armed robbery and resurgence of insurgency coupled with relentless attacks by ethnic militia men are a great concern for patriotic Nigerians and an embarrassment to the nation. These issues should be addressed squarely, promptly and fairly.
“On behalf of CAN, I congratulate all Christians in Nigeria and beyond on this most auspicious occasion of this year’s Easter, which is a commemoration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour,” he said.
He said lack of love today was the breeding ground for religious intolerance, killings and destructions, which in turn lead to insurgency and other forms of violence.
He added that this has led to humanitarian crises such as mass human displacements, hunger, outbreak of sicknesses and diseases across the nation.
He, however, thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for assuring Nigerians of his commitment to the provision of security for all, irrespective of tribe, religion or political divide.
The cleric said that Nigerians would want to see that this noble promise is translated into action in the most patriotic way.
The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.
This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.
The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.
Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.
The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.
From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.
From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.
Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.
From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.
The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.
The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.
Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.
He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.
This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.
The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.
Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.
He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.
The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.
Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.
Chinedu Wosu
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