Jonathan Urges Prayer For Nigeria

President Goodluck Jonathan has advised members of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) to continue to pray for peace, progress and unity of the country.

He gave the advice at the opening ceremony of the second plenary session of the conference, shortly after a Holy Mass at the Mater Dei Cathedral in Umuahia.

The president, who was represented by the Minister for Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Nwogu, underscored the need for the church and government to collaborate for the development of the country.

Jonathan expressed concern over the current religious bigotry, violence and hate among Nigerians at a time his administration was embarking on socio-economic transformation of the country.

He gave the assurance that the security problem in the country was being addressed, adding: “This administration stands for truth, justice and rule of law.’’

He restated the commitment of his administration to fighting corruption, saying all the institutions that were established to fight corruption had been strengthened.

Jonathan promised to continue to seek the face of God in steering the ship of the nation, adding that he was determined to leave a lasting legacy for posterity.

Earlier, the President of conference, Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama, reaffirmed the determination of the bishops to ‘’continue to inspire the Catholic faithful to live and work for one nation.

He said the current security challenges were designed “to create distrust, disharmony and disintegration’’.

He condemned the ‘’reckless attacks on Christians and other innocent Nigerians’’ and demanded that the mayhem be brought to a halt.

In their position papers, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria called on the Federal Government to uphold, protect and respect the fundamental rights of the religion and worship of Christians in Northern Nigeria.

In a Homily delivered on their behalf by the Catholic Bishop of Umuahia Diocese Bishop Lucis Ugorji noted that the world where Christians were living was now rocked by economic turmoil, insecurity and uncertainty, stressing that government must act fast to arrest the situation.

Ugorgi, who is the host bishop, also appealed to governments to address the plights of people with disability and marginalized communities.

He expressed the need for governments to step up actions to return missionary schools to their original owners, noting that immorality in the country had links to the decay in the education sector and other challenges.

Also speaking, Papal Nuncio to Nigeria, Most Rev. Augustine Kasujja, called for urgent government action to end the state of insecurity in the country.

Kasujja said the spate of killings, violence and general insecurity was worrisome, and emphasised, the imperativeness of ecumenism and dialogue among the different religions in the country.

Governor Theodore Orji of Abia and his Anambra and Imo counterparts, Peter Obi and Rochas Okorocha, delivered goodwill messages to the conference.

Orji said that ‘’politicians are not the most corrupt in Nigeria, so when you condemn the politicians, you should also condemn others’’.

Obi, however, acknowledged the allegation of massive corruption among the political class.

The governor noted the corrupt tendencies and unbridled quest by politicians to amass wealth at the expense of the people, regretting that “Nigeria is going down the drain’’.

He said that 123 private jets were recently registered in Nigeria, pointing out “’90 of these jets were purchased with stolen money”.

Okorocha admitted that the political leaders should be held responsible for the rot in the country, pointing out that the nation’s woes required spiritual intervention.