Gyang Bere, Jos
President of Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Rev. Jeremiah Gado, has challenged Federal Government to take proactive steps towards curtailing herdsmen killings, political assassinations and kidnapping before the entire country is engulf with fire.
He encouraged poor Nigerians who are being killed on daily basis to defence themselves from the unabated killing orchestrated by herdsmen and political assasins because the Federal Government has failed its constitutional responsibility of protecting the citizens.
Rev. Gado, in a communique after the 65 General Council of the Church held at the ECWA Headquarters Jos, also raised concern on the forceful take over of land by herdsmen in the North Central which has posed the challenges of food shortage in the country.
“The Council notes with dismay the continuous spate of kidnappings in Nigeria and apparent helplessness of the Nigerian Security agencies to rescue the victims resulting in huge sums of money being paid as ransom to the kidnappers.
“The wave of political assassinations, killings for rituals purposes, frequent mass murder of harmless, innocent and defenseless citizens are instances. Very often, our children the very symbols of life and vigour are the victims and agents of this wastage of human life. No person, authority or institution has the right to terminate human life and urge every body to respect the sanctity of human life and end the flow of innocent blood in the land.”
Rev. Gado called on Federal Government to step up effort and unravel herdsmen behind killings in Plateau, Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa, Niger, Kogi, Kaduna, Adamawa, Enugu, Zamfara and Delta states and make them face the full wrath of the law and compensate the victims in the interest of justice.
He urged the federal government to negotiates the released of the christian girl, Leah Sharibu and other Chibok girls who are languishing in captivity without further delay and salute the doggedness of Leah for refusing to denounced her faith despite threat to her life.
Rev. Gado said the Church would resist the humiliation and abduction of young girls in Northern Nigeria where they were being forced into early marriages, saying the act by prominent northerners is an infringement on the fundamental human rights of those young girls and it is a criminal offence.
He viewed with dismay the inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make available the facilities for registration of voters in some sections of the country, thereby depriving many citizens of the right to vote.
“We have heard of the registration of under aged persons in some states preparatory for rigging and manipulation of the process and urged Nigeria to resist any act that will jeopardise the future of the country.”
He said Nigeria is a secular state and demanded that Nigeria should be removed from the membership of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) and other Islamic organisations because it is in violation of the constitution of Nigeria.