The Catholic Bishops’ Conference
of Nigeria (CBCN) says Nigeria’s democracy is derailing under President
Muhammadu Buhari.
The clergies made this known in a
communiqué signed by Augustine Obiora Akubeze and Camillus Raymond Umoh,
president and secretary of CBCN respectively, at the end of their second
plenary meeting held between September 11-20 in Abeokuta, Ogun state.
The bishops said the Buhari
administration lacks transparency and accountability.
They also said Nigerians remain
manifestly religious, but this seems to have little effect on their
socio-economic and political lives.
“While praying for solutions to
our problems, we must endeavour to be just in our dealings with others, work
hard in fulfilling our duties, and collaborate with others in the social
transformation of our country,” the communiqué read.
“We observe that our democracy is
derailing from what it should be. The qualities of accountability,
transparency, independence of the judiciary, respect for fundamental rights,
observance of the rule of law, and fair and credible electoral process, to
mention only these, are still lacking. We therefore urge all politicians,
businessmen, religious leaders, public servants and indeed all citizens to live
out the values of their faith for the common good.
“There are, unfortunately, still
many instances of killings as a result of banditry, kidnapping, assassination,
armed robbery, reckless use of force by security agencies and lynching. Lately,
too, there is an upsurge in the cases of suicide, even among our youths.
Furthermore, the clashes between herdsmen and communities, and the activities
of Boko Haram insurgents have continued, in which many innocent people lose
their lives.
“These make living in Nigeria
very precarious. We recognise the efforts being made by the government to fight
insecurity in the land. However, we emphasise that a lot more still needs to be
done in this regard.”
The bishop said they observed
that the federal government, in which the power to control the major security
agencies is vested, is overwhelmed, and therefore there is a need for proper
decentralisation of these agencies for effective results.
They also said they have noted
with dismay that many months after the elections, many parts of the country are
still in disarray.
They said the country is badly
divided, and “this is evident in appointments to positions of national importance,
sharing of resources, and distribution of social amenities”.
“We urge especially the federal
government, to ensure that it does not allow ethnic or religious hegemony to
prevail in our multi-religious and secular state. No one religion should be favoured
over another. There should be fairness, justice and neutrality in relation to
all religions and ethnic groups, for where there is no justice, there can be no
peace, unity and development.”
The bishops have always been
critical of Buhari’s government.
In 2018, the bishops called on
the president to resign over the incessant attacks in the country.
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