Amid agitations for secession across the country, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, has said the government must give Nigerians a reason to want Nigeria to stay as one.
Lately, secessionist calls have increased across the country especially in Southern Nigeria. From Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) to agitators of Yoruba Nation, amongst others, the separatist calls rise, fueled by the unprecedented insecurity in the country as well as alleged nepotism and unequal distribution of economic resources by Buhari government.
The bishop said it is cheaper for Nigeria to remain as one country than break up into smaller units.
The cleric made this known on Saturday, May 1, while speaking virtually at the 2021 edition of The Platform, an annual conference organised by Pastor Poju Oyemade of Covenant Christian Centre, Lagos state.
The programme was themed, ‘Is Devolution of Powers The Solution To Nigeria’s Problems’.
Kukah stated that those seeking to secede from Nigeria might be right regarding their concerns.
According to him, “where we are now as a country is not even what the greatest enemy of Nigeria could have foreseen”, adding that the challenge now is how to get things back on the right track.
Kukah said All Progressives Congress government led by Buhari was to blame for making the citizens feel alienated from governance through inequality in power distribution at the highest levels.
He expressed;
Anybody who loves this country would have to accept the fact that the APC as a government and the President must take responsibility for the fact that the way power has been distributed in Nigeria has created a sense of alienation and it is the underlining factor why people feel the way they feel, why people feel so disenchanted, why people don’t feel a sense of psychological, emotional, cultural or even economical involvement in their country and there is the need to reclaim all of those things back.
Kukah stated:
Where our country is at the moment requires sobriety. It is not so much a question of trading blames, but we must also remember that it is not enough for us to simply paddle on.
The cleric said the government must, through its body language, convince people that Nigeria’s unity is worth it.
He expressed;
It may be right for everybody to want to go. Yes, it may be right for people to want to feel so dissatisfied that they wish an end to what we have today. But the cost of staying together is far cheaper than the cost of everybody going his way.
The most important thing here is that the government must give us a reason. The body language – we need to be inspired as a country to inspire ourselves that this country is worth the psychological, the spiritual and the cultural engagements.
Kukah further said the government must develop a sense of empathy for the victims of the rising insecurity in Nigeria.
He added;
The government must develop a sense of empathy. I have said this on several occasions; I do not mean anything negative, and everywhere you turn to, this is what Nigerians say.
People are dying, and we do not get a sense that those who govern us understand and see our pain because we have not seen them at funerals nor on condolence visits.
We have not seen them, whether by telephone call or whatever. Empathy is not sympathy. Empathy is at the heart of who we are as human beings.
He condemned the incessant killings across the country, adding that it is unclear whether those in power understand the pain of many Nigerians.
