To Address Nigeria’s Challenges, “make adequate policies”: Catholic Bishops to Government

The lack of adequate policies has resulted in the Nigerian government borrowing unnecessarily, thereby “jeopardizing the well-being of the present and future generations,” they lamented.

“This poor state of our economy has led to the mass migration of our human capital, especially professional and skilled laborers, fleeing the nation in search of greener pastures,” CBCN members further lamented in their communiqué following their September 8-16 Plenary Assembly.

They went on to denounce heightened insecurity in Africa's most populous nation, saying, “We continue to decry the worsening state of insecurity in our nation as well as activities of terrorists and insurgents, kidnappers and bandits.”

The Catholic Bishops regretted the fact that “armed robbery and cybercrimes have continued unabated.”

“Attacks on travelers and worshippers in Churches and other places of worship have become too frequent,” they said, recalling the Pentecost Sunday attack. 

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They added, “The government has not lived up to its duties with regard to security. We observe that even when suspects have been arrested, there is not even diligent prosecution of the culprits of these nefarious acts, thereby leaving the citizenry helpless and despairing.”

“While we continue to call on civil authorities to stand up to their constitutional responsibility of safeguarding the lives and property of Nigerians, we enjoin all to strengthen security measures in their homes and institutions,” CBCN members said.

Amid the challenge of insecurity, Catholic Bishops in Nigeria called up on “all citizens to be law-abiding, vigilant, and to shun all forms of violence and criminality.”

They went on to reflect on the “protracted strike” by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) that began earlier this year and termed it as “unacceptable.”

CBCN members urged the leadership of ASUU to go beyond the underlying issues prolonging the strike, exploring alternative ways resolving the matter rather than solely resorting to the judiciary.

They acknowledged the efforts of the courts in addressing the grievances of ASUU including the “non-implementation of agreements by the Federal Government” but noted that the process of the judiciary can be protracted. 

“We renew our call on the Federal Government and ASUU to find a quicker and better way of resolving the matters under contention so that public universities will reopen,” CBCN members said in their communiqué read out on September 15.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.