NNEWI—CHURCH of Nigeria, Anglican Communion,
Diocese on the Niger, Sunday called on President Muhammadu Buhari to review his
appointments in the interest of national unity by bringing in the best brains
irrespective of ethnic, political or religious inclinations. The church urged
the president to without further delay, stop parading the degree of nepotism,
corruption, insensitivity and impunity in his government and show concern about
the suffering of Nigerians. President Buhari It also lamented the decayed state
of infrastructure in the Southeast geopolitical zone, particularly the Onitsha
–Umunya-Enugu highway and the Enugu-Port Harcourt highway, describing them as
death traps and sad reminders of the Nigerian Biafra civil war. “We are sad
that the Federal roads in the South east have continued to deteriorate. Almost
all federal roads in the five Igbo speaking states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi,
Enugu and Imo are not motorable and with high rate of accidents occurring on
them.” This was contained in the Bishop’s Charge delivered to the Third Session
of the 30th Synod of Diocese on the Niger, presented by Bishop on the Niger,
Rt. Rev. Owen Nwokolo at St Paul’s Anglican Church Alor, Idemili South Local
Government Area Anambra State. Diocese on the Niger alleged that “the Federal
Government has maintained a conspiratorial silence over matters that concerned
the Southeast zone and deliberately allowed almost all the infrastructural
facilities in the zone to fail, including the Oji River Power Station that was
supplying constant electricity to the people of the defunct Eastern Region.”
The Diocese also expressed dissatisfaction with the way war on corruption is
being executed, describing it as “a woeful failure where a privileged few are
anointed political prophets who walk the street of world capitals enjoying
their loots, while the weak and helpless Nigerians are being chased about by
government’s anti –corruption machinery “ The Church in the Synod Theme titled
“Take your cross daily and follow me”, called on the All Progressives Congress,
APC, led government of President Buhari to embrace restructuring as the
solution to the nation’s intractable problems, adding that” restructuring will
ensure political, social, religious and economic stability, since it will not
be affected by religion and nepotism” “In line with the ongoing clamour for
political restructuring in Nigeria, we make bold to say that Anambra State
politics also needs restructuring. While we endorse the zoning arrangement
where the Anambra North, Central and South senatorial zone agreed to take turns
in governance, based on mutual agreement reached by the State elders and
leaders of thought, we equally recommend that the same structural arrangement
be considered for religious denominations. “We propose that for justice, equity
and fair play to reign in Anambra state politics, the Anglican Church should
produce the next Governor of Anambra state, after the present administration,
and therefore urge all political parties to present Anglican from the Anambra
South Senatorial zone for the next governorship election in 2022. “Anambra
State is predominantly a Christian state, populated by two main
denominations-Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches, however, since the forth
Republic, the South Senatorial Zone has taken a slot of four years, through Dr
Chinwoke Mbadinuju, 1999 to 2003, the Central has taken the governorship slot
for eleven years through Dr Chris Ngige, 2003 2006 and Mr. Peter Obi 2006 to
2014, while Chief Willie Obiano’s tenure of eight years for the North
Senatorial zone, 2014 to end in 2022. “We are supporting that the Anambra South
Senatorial zone would take next turn to produce the Governor of the state after
Governor Obiano, from the foregoing, it is obvious that the Roman Catholic will
at the end of Chief Obiano’s tenure would have taken the governorship slot for
a period of nineteen years, while the Pentecostal, through former Governor
Mbadinuju, had a slot of four years, without the Anglican Church occupying the
seat.”
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