Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Amb. Baba Gana Kingibe, has asked religious leaders in the country to teach their followers core values and ethics, which champion the enthronement of rule of law and due process in private or public transactions.

Kingibe, who delivered a keynote address at the opening ceremony of the second quarterly summit of the Nigeria Inter-religious Council (NIREC) in Maiduguri, said Nigeria’s core value imposes upon the people hard work, honesty and avoidance of corrupt practices, noting that corruption, indiscipline, laziness and distrust have destroyed the value of the nation.

"Our respective faiths condemn corruption and laziness and uphold honesty, hard work and discipline. These are also the values, which make nations great, and where they are compromised, their absence breeds weak nations vulnerable to crisis and conflict.

Trust is destroyed, and leaders cannot lead effectively, because citizens have no faith in their leadership," he said.
Represented by Dr. Abdulakeem Baba Ahmad, a permanent secretary in the SGF’s office, Ambassador Kingibe regretted that the nation has come far from the righteous path, a situation which might make the efforts of the Federal Government to enthrone rule of law in public service a difficult task.

However, he said the government at the centre was determined to pursue its objective of enthroning rule of law, due process and corruption free society, urging religious and spiritual leaders to carry the message of the society’s cherished values to their followers.

In his opening address, the co-chairman of NIREC, Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Mohammad Sa’adu Abubakar disclosed that the council was given the responsibility of healing the wounds created through religious crises in the past and also find measures of averting such crisis. He said government ought to extend arm of friendship to the aggrieved and those who were affected by the various religious crises in the country in form of assistance.

The Sultan said youths in Nigeria have become veritable weapons for perpetrating violence, promising the resolve of the council to advise government to put up measures on ways to empower the youths. "The empowerment should be different from what the government has now because our findings show that a young mind is a vital weapon for violence especially when such young man is hungry," he added.