Northern Christian Leaders Eagle-Eyes Forum (NCLEEF), drawn from the 19 Northern states, have expressed support for the presidential quest of All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.
NCLEEF Chairman, Abu Aminchi, a Pastor, said Nigeria is in dire need of a courageous leader who can confront corruption and insecurity.
Leaders who fear God
“What this country needs now are people with the fear of God. All this corruption we are talking about, all this insecurity, happen because we have abandoned the way of God. We need people who will show us to the way of God,” Aminchi counselled.
He disclosed that his group was used in the past to fabricate lies about Buhari and stressed the need for the members to make restitution.
“We have restitution to make, as Christians. If you know where you have gone wrong, the best thing to do is ask for forgiveness. Without that forgiveness, no matter what you do, you will not achieve success.
“As you are seeing us here, we have been the pillar of propagating a lot of fabrications against Buhari. Since 2003, they will call us and give us some things to go and write rubbish. The church moves faster than any other thing.
“I want to assure you, before I say anything, after this meeting, you and your Vice [Presidential candidate, Yemi Osinbajo] should go and rest. All of us here are going to be on our feet. We are going to sing this song that says, ‘pass me not oh Saviour, hear our humble cry,’ because we need the mercy of God.
“When Buhari came in here, you saw the way I was very uncomfortable, because I know what I, being the leader of this forum, know how far we had gone. But thank God, the Word of God says that the rejected stone will always be the head of the corner.
“God wants to use the two of you to be the head of the corner that we are passing through. We have taken decisions despite others begging us, ‘don’t do this, this is a slap, come and take this.’ We are not after money. What we are after is the future of this country.”
A copy of the Bible was given to Buhari as a symbol of support.
Pastors and other church leaders present at the meeting include:
Paul Great (Methodist Church, Jos); Lawrence Awanorwo (New Creation School of Divinity, Niger State); Daniel Oboni (Christ Life Evangelistic Church, Bauchi State); Musa Gomson (Unlimited Mercy and Glory Church, Gombe State); Abraham Babe (World Christian Mission, Taraba State).
Paul Zumta (Alheri Baptist Church, Sokoto State); Sam Adejoh (Life Changer Christian Centre, Yobe); Daniel Gonzuk (Amazing Grace, Benue State); Emmanuel Edesiri (Destiny Path Assembly Int. Nasarawa State); Sunday Divine (Later Times, Borno State); and Ifeanyi Ikeji (Lord’s Chosen Zonal Coordinator).
Islamic law can’t be imposed
Buhari reiterated that it is not possible for him or anyone else to impose Sharia law on Nigerians since the Constitution does not permit a state religion, insisting that he is not a religious fanatic.
“The Sharia identified in the Constitution is almost synonymous with customary law. It is only applicable in matters of personal status such as marriage, divorce, and inheritance.
“This has been the case since the 1979 Constitution. Just as no one can make any customary or any other religious law the law of Nigeria, so Sharia cannot therefore be the law of Nigeria,” Buhari maintained.
He said although he is a devout Muslim, he has never belonged to, nor shared the views of, any extremist group and “nowhere in my record of service to this nation can anyone find this false toga.”
Protection of lives, property
Buhari maintained that the role of the government is to protect lives and property of citizens, as well as respect and protect their constitutional rights.
“One critical freedom that every government must strive to protect is the liberty for citizens to exercise their respective faiths, Christians and Muslims or others, in a lawful manner without fear or hindrance and to prosecute those who use religion as an excuse to destroy homes, schools and places of worship.
“When governments fail in that duty, they must then assist in the rebuilding of structures, including destroyed places of worship and giving full restitution for lost property.
“We, Nigerians, are a religious people, and the burning of places of worship constitutes one of the vilest forms of abomination to all those who believe in God. It is the duty of governments to protect this important sensitivity.”
Osinbajo identified poverty as the common denominator without religious or ethnic bias.
“Poverty does not know religion, it doesn’t know Muslim, it doesn’t know Christian, it doesn’t know Hausa, it doesn’t know Yoruba or Fulani. Poverty is poverty. It affects people the same way.
“The corruption is such that so much money that should be used to take care of the people are stolen,” he added.
Catholic Bishops decry corruption, violence
Buhari, accompanied by Osinbajo, also had a meeting with the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) in Abuja and reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that the country remains a multi-religious state where every individual is free to practise his religion of choice.
CBCN President, Ignatius Kaigama, the Archbishop of Jos, said the group believes in the unity and progress of the country, and lamented the communication gap between the leaders and the people.
He expressed hope that the meeting was an indication of the willingness to establish a sustainable communication platform.
The bishops expressed concern for the falling education standard in Nigeria, widespread corruption, violence in the polity, and insecurity, among others.
No religious agenda
Buhari told the delegation that although he has been consistently maligned and vilified he has no personal religious agenda and will not support any move to Christianise or Islamise Nigeria.
“I will not condone any initiative that seeks to promote one religion over another,” he promised.
“In a country where a large percentage of the younger generation is unemployed and where no immediate respite is in sight, these challenges are prone to abound. Give them self improvement opportunities, offer them a view of a greater tomorrow and all these will be a thing of the past.”
On agric, corruption, citizens’ empowerment
He promised that if elected, his administration will pursue a well planned agricultural programme, develop the rural areas, empower citizens, and curtail rural-urban drift.
He pledged to boost solid mineral exploration and exploitation to create jobs.
On fighting corruption, Buhari said: “We already have laws and institutions empowered to fight against corrupt practices. All we need is the will to activate these structures and utilise them appropriately.”
He enthused Nigeria’s potential for greatness will become evident again and more appreciated soon after he steps into Aso Rock.