From Fred Ezeh

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Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Mathew Kukah has expressed worry that despite several interventions and interfaith dialogues, killings and violent extremism have continued across the country.
He encouraged religious leaders to diligently work and convince their followers on the need for peaceful co-existence and tolerance self and national development.
Kukah challenged political and community leaders to be sincere in handling the security issues in Nigeria, so that people would not loose faith in the government and resort to self help.
The clergy agreed that every Nigerian has the capacity to defend himself or herself verbally or otherwise, but doing that, he said, would be more disastrous and could lead to outright breakdown of law and order.
Bishop Kukah, who addressed some selected christian leaders from Gombe, Yobe and Kano states who participated in a training programme on countering violent extremism in Abuja yesterday, maintained that religious leaders have a great role to play on their followers.
He said, “those responsible for handling the security of Nigeria must step up their game and sincerely do the work for which they were elected. Clearly, there are no sense of urgency about resolving the unending crises in different part of Nigeria that have led to loss of thousands of innocent lives.
“We can’t continue to ask our people to remain law abiding when the government is insincere in handling security issues. That takes us to the issue of self defence. Self defence does not only mean carrying arm to defend oneself. It could come in different form, but the bottom line is that one must stand firm on his or her right as a bonafide citizen of Nigeria.
“On daily basis, we discover that our lives are being diminished, perhaps, by the way we are being treated by people that were elected to govern us, and that was what prepared the ground for the assault we face today.
“Every Nigerian is entitled to self respect and dignity that is commensurate to his or her right as a citizen.”