“Without people, there would be no Church”: Nigerian Prelate over Care for Less Privileged

“The Church has the responsibility of supporting governments in providing care for citizens irrespective of their religious inclinations,” the 66-year-old Prelate explained.

According to Archbishop Okeke, the distribution of palliatives “would continue as long as the Archdiocese can carry the burden of reaching out to the less privileged during this period of the pandemic.”

According to data from worldometer, Nigeria has recorded at least 3,526 cases of COVID-19 including 601 recoveries and 107 deaths.

The country has extended its lead in the West African sub-region while consolidating its spot in the most impacted nations category across Africa where at least 50,000 people have tested positive for the virus and more than 18,000 recovered from the disease, the Africa  Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has reported.

On Wednesday, May 6, authorities in Nigeria announced that airports will remain closed for an additional four weeks as part of the measures to control the spread of COVID-19.

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The extension is the second since March 23 when the Nigerian government suspended all of its commercial flights.

Speaking at the Wednesday, May 6 event, Archbishop Okeke prayed that “God will bring an end to the coronavirus pandemic” and cautioned the people of God to observe and embrace all safety precautionary measures towards containing its spread.

He also expressed gratitude to those who have supported the Archdiocese in carrying out the palliative measures in favour of the less privileged.

On his part, the Coordinator of the distribution of the palliatives, Fr. Basil Ekwunife, said the Archbishop was fulfilling the core mandate of the Church, which involves ministering to the spiritual and physical needs of the people of God.

On April 25, the Archdiocese of Abuja carried out a similar initiative of reaching out to the people of God affected by COVID-19-related measures. Termed “social responsibility of the Archdiocese of Abuja,” Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja presided over the distribution of food and locally made facemasks.

During the event, Archbishop Kaigama expressed the hope that the initiative he had undertaken to assist the needy in society would “inspire other individuals and groups to do the same.”

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.