Be very careful of religious issues, Buhari warned

Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria,
(CAN), Southwest Zone, Archbishop Magnus
Atilade has implored Buhari to take urgent
action concerning the delivery of dividends
of democracy to millions of Nigerians who
he noted are presently going through hard
times.
Be very careful of religious issues, Buhari
warned
He stated this when he responded to a
question killings of some Christians in some
northern parts of the country in an interview
with Daily Sun.
“My appeal to President Buhari is that he
should be careful on issues relating to
religion. There are some Nigerians who
already viewed him as a religious bigot.
Buhari should not play into the hands of
those who have such views. He should
realize that as the nation’s leader, he should
not show bias for any religion or give
preference to one over another.

“Nigeria is a secular nation, and that
secularity should be respected. Even under
the constitution, anybody that commits
murder deserves to be punished. Anybody
that takes others lives should not be spared.
Culprits or suspects should be arrested and
put on trial. Every Nigerian irrespective of
ethnic origin, and religious background
should be treated equally. There should be no
first class or second class citizens. Every
Nigerian should be treated equally.”
Asked to assess the government of Mr
Buhari, the cleric said; “So far so good, we
thank God that we are still on track. We thank
God that Nigeria is still one nation. ”
Speaking further, he added; "However, while
Buhari’s government has been at work
recording some progress in the past one year,
one must not fail to point out that we are yet
to have the desired change. For the common
man and people at the grassroots who readily
constitute the largest percentage of the
population, many of them are still groaning
and yearning for dividends of democracy.
If the truth must be told, even though
government is trying especially in the War
Against Corruption, but Buhari and his
advisers should also shift their attention to
other areas requiring urgent attention.
The president should look into the problem of
hunger and poverty. Millions of Nigerians are
complaining of hard times, these are people
that voted him into office, so the president
can’t afford to ignore them.
Buhari and his advisers should look at how to
formulate policies that will ensure that we
have food in abundance, and that will also
ensure that jobs are created for millions of
unemployed youths.

"A hungry man is an angry man as the saying
goes. As clerics, we are very close to the
grassroots, these common people come to us
everyday complaining and looking up to the
religious leaders for succour. I however believe
that Buhari should not let Nigerians have a
feeling that he has disappointed them. Buhari
came on the platform of effecting change, so
he owes Nigerians that obligation to bring
about changes that will put smiles on the faces
of Nigerians."