NOGOVERNOR ELECTED BY THE PEOPLE CAN BECOME EMPEROR

“No Governor Can Be An Emperor”

………. .Catholic Priest Tells Nasir El Rufai.

 KINGS OFURHE REPORTS

With the hue and cry that followed the submission of a “Bill” to the Kaduna state House of Assembly by the state Governor, Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai for regulation of religious preaching although yet to enacted, the Catholic Church has confronted the governor, stating that, no elected governor by the people can become an emperor.

Speaking at a briefing in Abuja, Caritas International, a department under the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) explained that the Kaduna state governor must tread with caution in his approach to strangulate the religious freedoms of the citizens of Kaduna state.

Making this known was the Director of Caritas International, Rev. Fr Evaristus Bassey who said; “though religious miscreants have caused a lot of havoc in our Nigeria, it does appear that the measures proposed, are overkill”.

“The danger in Nigeria is the manipulation of structures and institutions by strong individuals. Thus, the fear is that even if the proposed bill contains good aims, the proposed restrictions would play into the hands of officials of state who have a hegemonic mentality and would allow them the freedom to persecute one religion in favour of another”.

Bassey stated that; “the principle of separation of state and Church/Mosque which springs from the supposed secularity of the Nigerian constitution would be severely battered if this bill is pursued in the way it is”.

“El-Rufai, who is quite known as dogged in the pursuit of anything, if given this tool, would pursue ardently both what is good and what may be divisive”.

“We advise that Kaduna State rely on existing laws and existing state instruments of law enforcement, to maintain religious harmony in Kaduna State instead of reinventing the wheel.”

The Catholic Priest contended that; “the majority of Kaduna people appear not to want this law and their wishes should be respected, as no governor is an emperor but an elected official who should defer to the people’s will”.

“The people’s will is sovereign; because of the potential abuses this bill could bring when it becomes law, we opine that it is not necessary” he stated.

As a strategy to resolving this constitutional logjam on religion, the Catholic Church further tasked President Muhammadu Buhari to revisit the report of the National Conference organized by the last administration.

Accordingly, “Nigerian citizens should continue to engage political and state structures to become institutions which are guided by the rule of law”.

“The President Buhari led administration should revisit the provisions of the National Conference and, institute measures which should stand Nigeria on the pillar of justice and peace”.

“Our constitution, presently, is like a hermaphrodite, neither completely secular nor religious. A secular constitution guarantees the rights and dignity of all under the law”.

The church also bemoaned the ill-treatment of women in many cultures and communities, describing it as “a symptom of the overall deficiency in the respect for life which engenders a mindset that sees life as dispensable arguing that, the “underlying materialistic attitude” of society “sees the female specie not as fully human but as an object for male gratification.”

Rev. Fr Bassey urged government and traditional institutions to be in the forefront of promoting the advancement of the girl-child and the female gender.