Coup warnings from Nigeria: The Church of England Newspaper, Jan 28, 2011 January 31, 2011
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Church of Nigeria.trackback
Archbishop Nicholas Okoh
First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The House of Bishops of the Church of Nigeria has urged Africa’s most populous nation to reject extremist politics and sectarian passions ahead of this year’s general election, and work towards building a better Nigeria.
The oil-rich West African nation has witnessed an outbreak of sectarian violence in the central Plateau State while separatist and criminal gangs have paralyzed portions of the southern Delta region. Church and civil society leaders have urged Nigerians not to respond to the blandishments of extremists to solve their problems, and have also called on the government to reign in rogue elements of the army that appear to be setting the groundwork for a military coup.
On Jan 25, Christian Solidarity Worldwide reported that soldiers were behind a raid on a village in the Plateau State. On Jan 23 armed men dressed in military uniforms attacked a village. The villagers returned fire and wounded one man—who turned out to be a solider billeted at a nearby army post.
At the close of their Jan 3-9 retreat at the Ibru Centre in Agbarha-Otor in the Delta State, the 159 Nigerian bishops released a statement saying there were “very conscious of living at a time of great tension” in Africa’s most populous nation.
The “ability to conduct a free and fair election, an essential and necessary condition for the future of democracy in our nation, has been seriously compromised by the breakdown in basic security on the roads and in our communities,” the bishops said.
The “Christmas time bombings in Jos and Abuja and the recent killings in Maiduguri are yet further examples that we are in the middle of a deadly struggle for the soul and survival of our nation,” the bishops said, condemning there “terrible acts of violence.”
They urged the government to redouble it efforts to “bring the culprits to book immediately to forestall further deterioration of our security situation,” and voiced concerns that the chaos was being fostered by those who “have no credible or hopeful project for our beloved nation” in a bid to seize power.
The bishops urged the government to turn its attention to domestic matters: decent schools, safe roads, public order, corruption-free government, rebuilding the nation’s electrical grid and honest elections.
“This catalogue of concerns reflects not only our love for our nation and all its people but also our conviction that strong, honest, visionary leadership is vital if we are to give our people the hope that they deserve,” the bishops said.
Nigeria was a land of “amazing God-given resources and talented people capable of exercising not only national leadership but also taking their rightful place on the global stage.”
However, these gifts would not be fully realized until the nation placed itself under God and trust in him “who has promised that He will lead us into glorious future.”
