IBADAN: Church stages protest against herdsmen’s killings

THE Word Communication Ministry in Ibadan has joined other churches in the country to protest spate of killings by suspected Fulani herdsmen as an instruction from Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN.

The church members after the church service on Sunday were seen with placards with the following inscriptions: enough of bloodshed in Nigeria; enough of herdsmen’s killings in Nigeria; we say no to killings of Christians in Nigeria; CAN rejects FG’s poor handlings of insecurity; stop  nepotism, tribalism and cleansing now; enough of government’s insensitivity to killings of Christians among others.

Speaking during a warning protest, the Church’s senior pastor, Apostle Sunday Popoola called on President Mohammadu Buhari to stop the spate of killings by Fulani herdsmen in the country while he advised him to eschew tribalism, ethnic cleansing and nepotism.

“We are sad and very worried because too many lives are unnecessarily lost and we feel we have been deceived by those in authority since the clash between the ordinary herdsmen and farmers we know. There’s no way ordinary herdsmen will have access to AK47 which is used to kill. And again, what has herdsmen have to do with churches. They went to church, killed worshippers and priests. Is that still herdsmen and farmers’ issue?

“We have therefore started to believe that this is ethnic cleansing and that the security agencies, the Army, Police, DSS have been compromised, a reason they are looking away and probably aiding these killers.

“We are calling on the President, the Commander-in-Chief to rise up to his assignment for which we voted him. We mobilized to vote for him because we thought he would make difference, brought change in this country but things are going from bad to worse while the blood letting is getting too much.

” We want President Buhari to protect
lives and properties. The APC have been shouting over PDP’s alleged stealing of our money, but while PDP is stealing, APC is taking our lives. Thus, their sin is grievous than PDP. We want the present government not just save our money but our lives, which is more important. If nothing is radically done, there’s no way we will vote again for a government that allows bloodshed come 2019.

“The Christians should wake up to their responsibilities to express their dissatisfaction until Mr. President give us hearing and take practical action to show he cares about us and not only a section in the country”, Apostle Popoola stated.

The former Oyo State CAN chairman also said that situation like this persist because Christians are not participating in politics. According to him, “the Bible says when the righteous are in power, people rejoice but when the wicked rules, people mourn”.

He called on people who fears and love God and who are not only religious to go into politics so that people will rejoice. ” when people in the name of religion commit rape, murder and so on, my question is, which god are they serving? True Christians are taught to love even their enemies”.

Apostle Popoola therefore advised all Christians, all Nigerians, old and young to go and get their Permanent Voter’s Card, PVCs to vote on those who truly love this country.