Kaigama charges Nigerian govt to address ASUU strike, unemployment

The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Ignatius Kaigama, on Saturday charged the Federal Government to tackle the socio-economic problems causing hardship to Nigerians.

Kaigama, who made the call at the priestly ordination of 12 Catholic Deacons in Abuja, lamented that many Nigerian youths are now in other countries in search of greener pastures.

He also expressed concern that millions of the young people are now idle on the streets due to the prolonged strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

Kaigama said: “It should worry us terribly that because of bad policies and governance, our young ones, discouraged and crippled by socio-economic conditions at home, are desperately seeking greener pastures in countries that our resources as the so-called ‘giant of Africa’ could be 10 times more than theirs.

“We have millions of idle youths, some of them on the streets and some at home due to government failure to let them go back to school by positively responding to ASUU demands, and some, because their schools have become unsafe.

“More than 60 years after independence and blessed with so much oil wealth, many rural and even urban dwellers are still experiencing the lack of potable water, good and safe roads, modern agricultural tools and today, everyone is feeling the harsh impact of the high cost of fuel.

“Electricity supply is epileptic even as smaller countries around us enjoy it better. Instead of seeing politics as a means to good governance and better socio-economic conditions, leaders are employing politics for self-preservation. When it suits them they resort to religious politics.

READ ALSO: Nigerian govt deliberately allowed strike linger to invoke ‘no-work-no-pay’ policy —ASUU

“We get it wrong when some of us lift private religious practices above national interests or the common good, letting religious distrust, suspicion and stereotypes dominate, and refusing to simply see fellow Nigerians as neighbours to be loved and cherished.”

He admonished the newly ordained priests to support in the fight against spiritual, moral and social vices in the country.

The cleric added: “For the priest today in Nigeria, his task like that of Prophet Jeremiah is to urgently pull down and destroy not the well-built physical structures, but the unhealthy habits rooted in our tribal, political and religious subconscious, which manifest as poisonous prejudices or violent actions.

“By the grace of God, this priestly action together with the sincere political will of our leaders will lead us to the national consciousness of being one people and one nation.

“If only we use religion to build solid relationships with one another and with God, we will conduct politics without bitterness, malice or violence; we will have an equitable distribution of resources and appointments made into influential positions with greater sensitivity and balance.”

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