Bishop of Nike Anglican Communion, Rt. Revd. Dr..Christian Onyeka Onyia has berated Federal Government for playing lip service to issues of insecurity and unemployment, saying many Nigerians are in a hopeless situation.
Bishop Onyia who stated this during the 3rd session of its 5th Synod held at St. Peter’s Church, Thinker’s Corner, Enugu, noted that since independence, Nigeria had never faced the current level of polarization and unmitigated security crisis.
According to him, “It is particularly troubling that this is taking place under the leadership of a retired military general. Sadly, it seems that the president and the governors have lost control of the situation. No part of the country is spared by insecurity, ranging from terrorism, extremism, insurgencies, jihadism, kidnapping for ransom to extra-judicial executions of citizens by the state actors”
His words: “Sadly, the activities of Boko Haram and Fulani extremists appear to be a decoy to achieve other predetermined missions”
“Nigeria has also witnessed unprecedented endemic assassinations, looting of communities and abduction by Fulani extremists, posing as herdsmen. The people and communities now live in fear. Travelling in Nigerian routes is worse than being on war front. People’s fears are aggravated by their perception of the government’s failure to act in the face of the threat”.
“To prevent, mitigate and reconcile the looming crisis, Nigeria needs a policy to leverage its population for national development. Investments should be made in agriculture, not the current subsistence farming, but modern agriculture that must include post-harvest storage, utilization, and management of agricultural produce”, he added.
He also posited, “To address the problems and challenges facing the nation, Nigeria needs restructuring anchored on true federalism and resource control. It would stimulate healthy competitions among regions/states”
Onyia further noted that “the Church is a religious and social organization, guided by spiritual, ethical and social principles contained in the fundamental teachings and doctrine of Christian faith.
The expectation, he said, is that the Church will play a vital role in stimulating and influencing social change and in the improvement of the value system of society.
According to him, “To reduce the unemployment, poverty, misery rates in Nigeria, and the insecurity associated with these social deprivations, Diocese of Nike has set up cottage industries, farms and other agricultural processing industries in the communities.
“In the Diocese of Nike, our focus is more on rural communities, because our diocese is 30% urban and 70% rural. Most importantly, rural mission based on social action and rural development are our objectives. During this Synod, there were medical outreaches even as the Church dedicated her new cottage industries, hospitals, and vicarages.
“The personality and principles of God, manifested in the life of Jesus Christ through his earthly ministry, have captured the essence of the Church on social action.
