Nigerian Archdiocese Responds to “cry of the people,” Donates to State amid COVID-19 Bite

While the shutdown was welcomed, the Prelates in Africa’s most populous nation raised concerns that people without savings are “getting close to starvation” and the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) called on his brother Bishops to come up with ways of reaching out to the poor people in their respective pastoral contexts.

Recently, the CBCN also granted the Presidential Task Force committee full access to all health facilities, owned by the Catholic Church.

In line with the CBCN offer, Archbishop Martins announced the decision to make St. Raphael Divine Mercy Hospital, Ijede available for use as an isolation centre if the need arises.

According to Fr. Godonu, “The Archbishop later revealed that the support offered to Lagos State Government was in addition to the provisions for the poor that he directed the over 180 parishes of the Archdiocese to make in their different localities spread all over the State."

He added, “About 78 smaller parishes that could not afford to make the provisions without some support were assisted with various sums of money from the nearly 10million naira that was raised from the Archbishop’s Appeal to the faithful at the beginning of the lockdown.”

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"The Archbishop thanked the Priests and the faithful of the different Parishes for taking action on the directive, thereby revealing Jesus’ love of the poor in the provisions they are making for the people," Fr. Godonu reported. 

“The hard work that has been done in ensuring that we are a model state in the effort to stem the spread of the virus (and) the effort that has been made to provide palliatives to support the most vulnerable among us,” Archbishop Martins was quoted saying. 

Speaking on behalf of Lagos State governor, Dr. (Mrs) Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, on behalf of her husband, thanked the Catholic Church for its kind gesture and assured that the donated items will be properly utilized for the purposes they were meant for.

The Archdiocese donated relief items that included 500 bags of rice and beans and 4000 hand sanitizers.