By Sam Eyoboka, Wole Mosadomi, Caleb Anyansina  & Olayinka Latona

CHRISTIAN leaders across Nigeria have urged Christians and non-Christians in the country to reflect on social injustice this Easter, especially persons killed or displaced by sectarian violence in parts of the country, those living in poverty on our streets or struggling with one disability or the other.

The leaders including the National President of CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, Prelate, Methodist Church Nigeria, Most Rev. Sunday Ola Makinde, Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martin, his Anglican counterpart, Most Rev. Ephraim Adebola Ademowo, have all admonish-ed Nigerians to imbibe the virtues of love and peace with all men.

Pastor Oritsejafor, in a statement in Abuja urged Christian faithful to use the Easter celebration “to reflect on their lives and make the most of the resurrection of the Jesus Christ”.

File photo: Mr Ernest Okorie and others of St Dominic Church Young Christian Workers performed the Passion of Jesus as Christians all over the world mark Good Friday the day Jesus Christ was crucified . Photo by Biodun Ogunleye

A statement signed by his Media Assistant, Kenny Ashaka, urged Nigerians, saying; “remembering how He died for our sin is a call to rededicate ourselves to the reason why he died for us”.

He urged all Christians in Nigeria to be calm and to watch and pray for God’s intercession in the face of all challenges.

In his own message, Makinde said the sacrifice exhibited by Jesus Christ was to lessen the burden and suffering of the poor by bringing hope to the hopeless.

“But today, the hopelessness of the hopeless is deepening and the gap between the rich and the poor is widening more-and-more. Suffice to say that Jesus Christ in spite of his own pain and anguish while on the cross heard the cry of the penitent thief that hung by his side when the latter cried out for forgiveness, but our leaders today are not moved by the cries, agony and grief of the hurting masses whom they claim to be serving.

“That is why thousands continue to die on bad roads and preventable diseases because of lack of drugs in our hospitals, parents and their wards die of bad water and poverty because of lack of good food.

“No doubting the fact that if we love ourselves the way Jesus Christ did which was the fundamental reason why he laid down his life to save us from perishing; we would not be embezzling and mismanaging our collective resources which were given for us by God to make life meaningful and abundant for all.

“It is pertinent to ask if we do care for our neighbours as ourselves. How does one explain religious intolerance in some parts of the country which is taking an alarming dimension and poses a dangerous threat to our peaceful co-existence as a people if it continues unabated. I still believe that Mr. President should not grant amnesty by proxy. Those who are killing, maiming, and destroying properties should show their faces and tell the nation their problems, dialogue, and drop their weapons before amnesty is contemplated,” he stated.

The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos described Easter as the focal point of the Christian faith, adding that it is the fulfillment of prophecies made in the Old Testament and the promises Jesus made.

“The recent presidential pardon granted some Nigerians who were indicted for one form of offence or the other has created some passionate argument,” the archbishop said, “while it is not out of place for the President to exercise his prerogative of mercy as entrenched in the nation’s constitution, it is only right that he should be guided by some moral dictates in deciding those who are truly deserving of such pardon.

“The legal propriety is not enough, the government need to also consider the moral implication of its decision to exercise the prerogative. We hope that government will be more careful and principled in granting pardon,” he said.

To the electoral body, Martin said the journey to the 2015 election has already commenced with our politicians already jostling for attention, aligning and re-aligning. This is the hall mark of democracy.

He appealed to INEC to be proactive and alive to its activities by ensuring that all possible legal/constitutional impediments to the conduct of a free and fair election are resolved in the shortest possible time.

According to him, events of the past few weeks, particularly the spate of insecurity in the land, leaves much to be desired. “We are all witnesses to the renew surge of violence being perpetuated by those who claim to be members of the Boko Haram sect against some of our brothers and sisters, particularly in the northern part of the country.

“Every day we wake up in fear and trepidation, wondering whose turn it would be to be blown into bits by the messengers of death who have come to steal, kill and destroy. How long are we going to continue to endure this near state of anarchy whereby human life has come to mean little? Enough is enough.

“We cannot continue to fold our hands and recoil in the comfort of our air-conditioned offices and homes and pretend that all is well. As we commend the security operation that led to the discovery of the lethal bomb-making materials and ammunition in Lagos, we appeal to all our people to be vigilant and pay attention to people events and activities around them. Landlords should pay attention to those they hire out their properties and everyone should be security conscious,” he added.

In a similar vein, the Spiritual Father of Cherubim and Seraphim Movement  Church, Worldwide Ayo Ni O, Most Rev. Samuel Abidoye called on the Federal Government to be more responsive to the security of the country and take a decisive step over the constant loss of lives and property of innocent Nigerians through the Boko Haram insurgencies especially in the northern part of the country.

In his Easter message, Abidoye noted that where over 3,000 lives have been lost to various insurgencies by the Boko Haram sect especially in the North call for more attention of government.

He also called the attention to the army of unemployed youth roaming the streets across the country, a situation he noted contribute to the crime wave in our society.

According to him, “unemployment is a keg of gunpowder that can send this country in the direction that we never imagine. It requires urgent and immediate attention. To address the problem, it is important for the government to have a second look at our educational programme. Instead of the prevalent white collar jobs that our graduates are prepared for, a second look should be given to inculcating vocational training into our school curriculum, and this should start from secondary school education.”

Presiding Bishop of TREM, Dr. Mike Okonkwo called on Nigerians to remain hopeful and grateful to God because the message of Easter is all about ‘Hope to humanity’.

“I specially call on every Nigerian to continually pray for the peace of our nation because no meaningful development can take place in an atmosphere of violence and insecurity. We must all join hands together as stake-holders to ensure that we dwell together as one people in spite of our political, tribal and religious differences.

“To the nation, let me assure everyone that in spite of the seemingly difficult challenges that stares us in the face as a nation, we must hold on, because God will turn it around for our own good. Nigeria will again take her place in the committee of Nations. Let us remain hopeful as the change we have always dreamt of is becoming a reality,” he assured.