IBADAN JANUARY 22, 2016(CISA)-The Catholic Bishops Conference of Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province has called on the government to remain focused in the fight against insurgency and corruption in the country.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the Second Plenary Meeting of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province, the bishops called on the government to sustain the current general security vigilance so as end reoccurrence of the worst days of insurgency in the nation.
“We appeal to the government that the current general vigilance in the area of security be sustained so as to forestall a reoccurrence of the worst days of insurgency in Nigeria,” said the bishops in communiqué signed by Archbishop Gabriel Abegunrin of the Catholic Archdiocese of Ibadan.
The bishops however cautioned the government to be keen to avoid punishing the wrong people on crimes committed by the insurgent group, Boko Haram.
“We plead that great care be taken to avoid punishing innocent people for the crimes of the guilty insurgents,” said the Bishops. The bishops further noted that many Nigerians were happy to see the government fish out and prosecute looters of public funds.
“We encourage the government to stay focused on this important imperative of change. In pursuing this noble cause, however, Nigeria must avoid the endorsement of impunity. Two wrongs simply do not make a right and official lawlessness is always toxic for public sanity,” the bishops said.
The two day plenary assembly was held at the Jubilee Conference Centre, Oke-Ado, Ibadan, from January 18-19, 2016.
The bishops emphasized the importance of the ongoing Jubilee of Mercy in the Universal Church declared open by Pope Francis on December 8, 2015 as “a reminder to all human beings of the mercy we enjoy from God the Father of all and to focus us on the role of Jesus Christ as the face and personification of God’s mercy.”
“We call especially on all Catholics in Nigeria to seek God’s mercy through penance, the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the practice of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy which includes the mutual forgiveness of wrongs,” said the bishops.
Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province comprises of the Archdiocese of Ibadan and the Dioceses of Ondo, Ekiti, Ilorin, Oyo and Osogbo.
