Being excerpt from a speech by His Grace, Most Reverend Dr. Alfred Adewale Martins, Metropolitan Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos on the occasion of Nigeria's 52nd independence anniversaryI FEEL very privileged to address the people of God and by extension fellow citizens of this country Nigeria. This auspicious occasion of our country's 52nd independence anniversary, offers us another opportunity to thank the good Lord for bringing us thus far as a nation despite the turbulence and not too pleasant experiences we have been contending with in our chequered journey to nationhood. It is also an opportunity for us to reflect on the past, the present and our hopes for tomorrow.The theme of this address: 'Call to Repentance,' is taken from the book of Nehemiah Chapter 1 verse 8-9.'If you people of Israel are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the other nations. But then if you turn back to me and do what I have commanded you, I will bring you back to the place where I have chosen to be worshipped, even though you are scattered to the ends of the earth.'This passage of scripture is very instructive in view of the present state of affairs in our nation. Like us, the Israelites were once in deep affliction. They had been bundled into exile and became slaves in a foreign land. In their quest for liberation, they sought the face of God and the above passage was God's response to them. He made it clear that their deplorable condition was a result of their sins, disobedience and lack of righteous living. If they turned a new leaf, he would rescue them from their afflictions. Consequent chapters of Nehemiah went on to show us how the people of Israel under Nehemiah repented and turned back to God and how He fulfilled His promise by bringing them safely back home. This message is also for us.Our people are scattered all over the world in search of greener pastures. Many more are daily besieging foreign embassies for visas. If all were well, our youths would not be jetting out. In spite of these, God has not abandoned us. Like the Israelites of old, we too are called to true repentance so that all the myriads of challenges facing us as a nation can become a thing of the past. A cursory appraisal of the state of affairs in our country today will no doubt point to the fact that we need God now than ever before.At 52, are we close to attaining the just and equal society as envisaged by our founding fathers' When compared with other third world countries, some of whom are not even endowed with a quarter of our natural resources, can we truly affirm that we have performed creditably well' What are the things we must do in our collective resolve to make our country the true giant of Africa' These and many more are very important posers worth reflecting on.Every citizen of this great country is not spared in this soul-searching exercise. So long as it has pleased God in his divine wisdom to make you a citizen of this great nation, you have the obligation and moral right to make your input and be an active participant in the task of building a virile nation.My heart goes out to the Bishop, the Clergy, the Religious and the entire faithful of St John's Catholic Church, Bauchi, over the recent bombing of their parish by suspected Boko Haram sect members, which claimed three lives and left 46 others wounded. I particularly sympathise with the families and relations of the dead and ask the good Lord to strengthen them in this period of sadness gloom.This callous and unwarranted onslaught on the innocent faithful who had gone to worship their God is a direct attack on all that is divine and must be condemned by all right thinking people. It also calls for heightened security in places of worship in all parts of the country.However, I want to commend the Federal Government and in particular the Nigerian Army and other security agencies for the breakthrough recently recorded in the fight against terrorism. Apart from arresting over 100 alleged members of the sect, report has it that the security agencies also succeeded in discovering and confiscating large caches of arms and ammunition and hand-made explosives being used to terrorise the good people of Nigeria. The above shows that government is not asleep in the fight against terrorism and other forms of insecurities in the land.The option of dialogue with the embattled sect members should remain open. As the Catholic Church has always emphasised, every human life is very precious and must not be toyed with. One only hopes that lasting peace would be found soonest without further recourse to violence or the shedding of innocent blood.
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