No end in sight, Catholic bishops say

Insecurity:No end in sight, Catholic bishops say

Catholic Priests protesting the killing of a Priest, Rev. Fr. Paul Offu on Friday

Ado Ekiti

Catholic Bishops expressed fear and sadness the insecurity in Nigeria. The insecurity issues appeared to be no end in sight and the Federal Government was merely paying little service to the issue of security.

The Archbishop of Ibadan Archdiocese and President, Catholic Bishops Conference of Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev. Gabriel Abegunrin, lamented that “it is, unfortunately, a commonplace phenomenon that Nigerians wake up each day to lament woes of killings, lynching, kidnappings and brigandage in the country”.

In Ado Ekiti, Abegunrin spoke while reading the communique after the meeting of the province, saying “Many people including Catholic priests have fallen to this tragically insecure environment”.

“The lack of a clear pattern of punishing crimes and little-service commitment to the protection of lives and property on the part of the Federal Government and security agencies have left many Nigerians living in fear from day to day”.

“There seems to be no end in sight especially with the allegations of killings by Fulani herdsmen being left unattended to. Time is running out for Nigeria if security is not improved. We call on governments at all levels, traditional and other civil authorities to please save the country,” the Catholic bishops said.

They also lament the Federal Government halt the attempt to license and tax places of worship in the country, saying they suspected that the government had a hidden agenda about this proposed action.

While saying contemporary circumstances in Nigeria demand that government approaches religious matters with the utmost caution, the clerics called on the Federal Government to take a second look at the issue of licensing a place of worship for a celebration of marriages and issuing of marriage certificates.