JOS, AUGUST 30, 2019 (CISA)-Archbishop Ignatious Kaigama of the Catholic Archdiocese of Jos has called on the Government of Nigeria to support the Church in its quest for sound academic, moral and spiritual upbringing of youth.
In his speech during the opening of General Assembly of the Catholic Archdiocese of Jos on August 27, he lamented poor infrastructure in schools with teachers who lack integrity and exemplary conduct.
“I know of tertiary institutions where students are crowded into lecture halls in their thousands without seats or a functional public address system; where students are forced to buy handouts or give favors in return for marks,” he said.
Archbishop Kaigama noted that “…the situation is not healthy which is why at every opportune moment we have not failed to remind government of the need to return Church schools taken over and to support the Church contribute its known quota of sound academic, moral and spiritual upbringing of our youth.”
He encouraged families to promote neighborhood parenting as it used to be in the past where everyone was responsible for the upbringing of children.
“Today, even teachers are accosted and publicly shamed by some parents because some teachers take disciplinary measures against their sons or daughters,” he said, lamenting how some of the parents ,“negatively influence the academic performance of their children by paying some corrupt teachers or registering their children in dubious exam centres.”
Based on the theme ‘An Evaluation of the Youth Apostolate in the Catholic Archdiocese of Jos’ Archbishop Kaigama invited participants of the General Assembly to address concerns raised around the young people.
He also invited the youth to participate actively along with other groups during the celebration of the Extra Ordinary Missionary Month of October, 2019 as requested by Pope Francis.
The General Assembly is an annual event that brings together the archbishop, priests, religious and the laity to discuss ways to improve services in the medical, educational and social fields in the diocese.
