Niger State Governor, Abubarkar Sani Bello, has assured all indigenes, including Christians and adherents of other religion that the state belonged to all the law-abiding Nigerians.
He also said that his administration would protect lives and properties of all.
“People see Niger State as a miniature Nigeria because of the diverse religious and tribal representations in the state and government also recognizes adherents of the two major religions in the state, Christianity and Islam, co-existing peacefully,” he said.
The governor spoke through the state Commissioner for Justice, Nasara Dan-Malam Baba, during the 2016 Christmas Carnival organised by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Niger State chapter on Monday.
The governor, apparently was reacting to fears expressed by Christians about rumour that some faceless individuals were warning Christians to steer clear of some parts of the state in their own interest.
He said that his administration was voted by all citizens and would carry everyone along.
Bello solicited for prayers by Christians for the success of his administration, President Muhammadu Buhari and other officeholders. He assured of his administration’s preparedness to carry everyone along irrespective of religious and political inclinations.
Niger Ctate chairman, Christians Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Matthias Echioda, who was represented by the chairman, Minna DCC of the ECWA, Rev. Sani Barde, appealed to the state government to urgently employ teachers of Christian Religious Knowledge (CRK) in public schools.
Echioda who also alerted Governor Bello on the dangers of increasing army of unemployed youths in Niger State and the need for the government to create jobs for them said that the annual carnival provided opportunity for Christians of all denominations in the state to fellowship with one another in the spirit of the yuletide.