Matthew Kukah, the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, has expressed concern about what he called “relentless daily killings in Nigeria.”
According to reports, the cleric issued a warning about the extraordinary scope and pattern of violence.
In Yola, Adamawa State, Kukah gave a speech at the public presentation of Solomon Kumangar’s book, The Man They Could Not Stop, to Governor Ahmadu Fintiri. Kumangar was the previous Director-General of Media and Communication.
Nigeria has grown dangerously polarized along religious lines, according to Kukah, who bemoaned the frequency of killings throughout the nation.
“Niger, Cameroon, Ghana, Sudan, or any other country in the world cannot experience what is happening in Nigeria,” Kukah stated.
“No other nation in the world has weekly killings of 10 people on Monday, 50 on Tuesday, and 100 on Wednesday. How can a nation like that progress?
He went on to say that religious identities are increasingly being used as a prism to report and comprehend acts of violence.
People only die as Muslims and Christians in Nigeria. The killings along religious lines—20 Christians and 30 Muslims—are being encouraged by the Western media.
Kukah called for religious and political leaders to put aside sectarian differences and establish organizations that advance harmony, peace, and the advancement of the country.
The cleric also praised Attahiru Jega, the former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, for his crucial role in stabilizing the situation during the 2023 Adamawa governorship election issue.
Bukola Saraki, the former governor of Kwara State and president of the Senate, also spoke at the occasion and asked Nigerians to put leadership and competency above party loyalty.
“The nation can only advance if the appropriate individuals are allowed to lead its affairs,” Saraki stated, noting that Governor Fintiri’s infrastructure demonstrated his capacity for leadership.
Abdullahi Sule, the governor of Nasarawa State and the event’s chairman, publicly urged Fintiri to join the ruling All Progressives Congress.
“I would give it to you today as our new member if I came with the APC cap and flag,” Sule declared.
Governor Fintiri recounted the chaos of the 2023 governorship race and referred to himself as “a man of destiny” in his speech.
“Many unsuccessful attempts were made to stop me. He claimed that the 2023 election was the pinnacle of them and that it was humiliating for the state, the country, and democracy everywhere.
He warned that similar forces are still at work and accused anonymous political actors of treachery and moral lapse.
“This group of political puppeteers and pretenders is still active, moving back and forth between Yola and Abuja, and they are blatantly and dangerously meddling in our democracy.” We must use our votes to oppose them, just as we did in 2023.
The Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Governors Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) and Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), as well as officials from Gombe, Borno, Yobe, Taraba, and Plateau states, attended the book launch.
Mustapha Salihu, the APC’s Deputy National Vice Chairman (North-East), introduced the book and asked Adamawa citizens to keep funding Fintiri’s development initiatives.
