Alleged Coup Plot: Catholic Bishops Urge FG To Shun Propaganda, Blackmail Against Religious Leaders

…Say Nigeria’ll become ungovernable, if…

The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, CBCN, on Friday,
urged the Federal Government to shun all forms of propaganda
against religious leaders who disagree with its performance and
step up actions towards addressing the pervasive insecurity in the
land.

The Bishops, who rejected the purported plot to destabilise the
country through a military takeover, however, warned that the
country will collapse and become ungovernable if the government
continued to ignore the constructive criticisms.

The CBCN stated this in a statement signed by its President,
Archbishop Augustine Akubeze, which was titled ‘Urgent Call to the
Federal Government to be Open to Criticism in Addressing the
Pervading Insecurity in Nigeria.’

It reads in part, “Nigerians are tired of hearing of bandits
taking youths at the University and executing some of them, while
others are kept to be used to bargain for ransom.

“The insecurity is leading to a daily loss of lives and
properties in every part of the country. These facts are
indisputable. A country where students are no longer safe in
schools nor farmers safe in their farms does not have a future to
look to.

“In the midst of all these, the Presidency recently stated that
some religious leaders and some Nigerian politicians are plotting
to destabilise the country. The spokesperson for the Nigeria Army
noted that there is no plan by the military to take over
democratically elected persons.

“While we reject any call for the destabilisation of Nigeria or
military takeover, we nonetheless say to the Federal Government of
Nigeria, led by President Muhammadu Buhari, there is no need to
focus your energy, time and resources in any form of propaganda
against religious leaders who disagree with your performance. There
is no need to spend so much of your time trying to blackmail anyone
who criticises your Government.

“We speak out because we do not want Nigeria to collapse. We are
not speaking out for the APC Government to fail. We are speaking
out so that Nigeria will not fail.

“APC is not the owner of Nigeria; Nigeria is owned by Nigerians
irrespective of political affiliation. APC Government must learn to
listen to every Nigerian, both political actors in other parties
and non-political actors in Nigeria and the diaspora.

“It is not out of place to call for a security summit in
whatever form it may take as long as it leads to the unity, peace,
justice, progress and protection of Nigerians.

“The Federal Government must be transparent with every Nigerian
in the struggle to revive our economy, industrialise the nation,
objectively deal with corruption and significantly reduce the high
level of insecurity and unemployment.

In every democracy, the welfare of the citizens is of great
concern to the President.

“From time to time, Presidents address the people and give an
account of the state of affairs in the country. Presidents of
countries grant interviews to the media who are the watchdogs of
democracy. But in Nigeria, we hardly hear directly from our
President. Most of the time, we hear from “the Presidency.”

“Nigerians did not elect presidential media spokespersons.
Nigerians do want to hear directly from their President and hear
words that are matched with actions.

“To every religious leader, let us not use inflammatory words
that distort the real message we are sending to this Government. We
must be united in the fight for our common destiny as a people.

“It must be clearly stated to the Federal Government that if
they continue to ignore the constructive criticisms and
recommendations of Nigerians from every sector, the country will
collapse and become ungovernable.

“We are speedily getting there. Police stations are being burnt,
our gallant military men and women are being killed, barracks are
attacked, IDP camps are attacked, farmlands are invaded, youth
unemployment is at its highest, private sectors are not giving
enabling environment to thrive, and appointments to offices are not
reflective of our diversities; the complaints are almost endless –
could the sounds signal a collapsing nation to be louder than
this?

“In Nigeria, the Catholic Church wants the Federal Government to
call for a meeting of all stakeholders to have a sincere discussion
on the way forward. Such discussions must seek how to implement the
much talked about restructuring and devolution of power down to the
local government level.

“Let us continue to pray to God to grant the Federal Government
and other State actors the wisdom and courage to bring peace and
justice to every Nigerian.

“No Government leader should watch the breakdown of law and
order in Nigeria. It is our collective obligation to make Nigeria
successful.

“As religious people, we entrust Nigeria into the hands of God
and pray that we may respond to the voice of God calling us out of
this crisis.
May God bless Nigeria and keep her safe.”

…Say Nigeria’ll become ungovernable, if…

The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, CBCN, on Friday,
urged the Federal Government to shun all forms of propaganda
against religious leaders who disagree with its performance and
step up actions towards addressing the pervasive insecurity in the
land.

The Bishops, who rejected the purported plot to destabilise the
country through a military takeover, however, warned that the
country will collapse and become ungovernable if the government
continued to ignore the constructive criticisms.

The CBCN stated this in a statement signed by its President,
Archbishop Augustine Akubeze, which was titled ‘Urgent Call to the
Federal Government to be Open to Criticism in Addressing the
Pervading Insecurity in Nigeria.’

It reads in part, “Nigerians are tired of hearing of bandits
taking youths at the University and executing some of them, while
others are kept to be used to bargain for ransom.

“The insecurity is leading to a daily loss of lives and
properties in every part of the country. These facts are
indisputable. A country where students are no longer safe in
schools nor farmers safe in their farms does not have a future to
look to.

“In the midst of all these, the Presidency recently stated that
some religious leaders and some Nigerian politicians are plotting
to destabilise the country. The spokesperson for the Nigeria Army
noted that there is no plan by the military to take over
democratically elected persons.

“While we reject any call for the destabilisation of Nigeria or
military takeover, we nonetheless say to the Federal Government of
Nigeria, led by President Muhammadu Buhari, there is no need to
focus your energy, time and resources in any form of propaganda
against religious leaders who disagree with your performance. There
is no need to spend so much of your time trying to blackmail anyone
who criticises your Government.

“We speak out because we do not want Nigeria to collapse. We are
not speaking out for the APC Government to fail. We are speaking
out so that Nigeria will not fail.

“APC is not the owner of Nigeria; Nigeria is owned by Nigerians
irrespective of political affiliation. APC Government must learn to
listen to every Nigerian, both political actors in other parties
and non-political actors in Nigeria and the diaspora.

“It is not out of place to call for a security summit in
whatever form it may take as long as it leads to the unity, peace,
justice, progress and protection of Nigerians.

“The Federal Government must be transparent with every Nigerian
in the struggle to revive our economy, industrialise the nation,
objectively deal with corruption and significantly reduce the high
level of insecurity and unemployment.

In every democracy, the welfare of the citizens is of great
concern to the President.

“From time to time, Presidents address the people and give an
account of the state of affairs in the country. Presidents of
countries grant interviews to the media who are the watchdogs of
democracy. But in Nigeria, we hardly hear directly from our
President. Most of the time, we hear from “the Presidency.”

“Nigerians did not elect presidential media spokespersons.
Nigerians do want to hear directly from their President and hear
words that are matched with actions.

“To every religious leader, let us not use inflammatory words
that distort the real message we are sending to this Government. We
must be united in the fight for our common destiny as a people.

“It must be clearly stated to the Federal Government that if
they continue to ignore the constructive criticisms and
recommendations of Nigerians from every sector, the country will
collapse and become ungovernable.

“We are speedily getting there. Police stations are being burnt,
our gallant military men and women are being killed, barracks are
attacked, IDP camps are attacked, farmlands are invaded, youth
unemployment is at its highest, private sectors are not giving
enabling environment to thrive, and appointments to offices are not
reflective of our diversities; the complaints are almost endless –
could the sounds signal a collapsing nation to be louder than
this?

“In Nigeria, the Catholic Church wants the Federal Government to
call for a meeting of all stakeholders to have a sincere discussion
on the way forward. Such discussions must seek how to implement the
much talked about restructuring and devolution of power down to the
local government level.

“Let us continue to pray to God to grant the Federal Government
and other State actors the wisdom and courage to bring peace and
justice to every Nigerian.

“No Government leader should watch the breakdown of law and
order in Nigeria. It is our collective obligation to make Nigeria
successful.

“As religious people, we entrust Nigeria into the hands of God
and pray that we may respond to the voice of God calling us out of
this crisis.
May God bless Nigeria and keep her safe.”