The Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Archbishop Mathew Kukah articulated his anguish over the persistent, daily loss of life brought about by religious and political conflicts in the nation. He issued an impassioned call for the nation to reject violence and intolerance in all their forms.
Expressing profound grief over the daily loss of life due to religious and political conflicts, Kukah made the appeal at the National Peace Committee’s ‘High-Level Discourse on Religion and Democracy’ event held in Abuja.
The National Peace Committee (NPC) is a vital initiative dedicated to promoting peace, unity, and national cohesion in Nigeria. Led by former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, the NPC brings together key stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to facilitate dialogue and foster understanding across various sectors of the society.
At the event, Kukah asserted that Nigeria must establish a strong moral foundation to combat the destructive effects of religious conflict in society.
He proclaimed that taking a human life in the name of religion is morally reprehensible and utterly incompatible with the principles of compassion and justice that are foundational to all major religions.
The Archbishop cited the tragic case of Deborah Yakubu, a female student who was gruesomely murdered by a mob in Sokoto over allegations of blasphemy, to illustrate the dire consequences of religious intolerance and extremism.
Kukah said, “In the name of democracy and religion, Nigerians are dying daily. So, something must be wrong.
“In the last 30 years, one of the legacies of the military was the demolition of the role of intellects. It was a time when General Babangida accused members of the academic community of teaching what they were not paid to teach.
“Therefore, helping ordinary Nigerians to think became a crime. And we have not recovered yet from that legacy. The result is that we are finding this political space occupied by all kinds of people.
“How does it happen that an individual can kill a fellow individual on the ground that ‘you have allegedly sinned against my religion.’
“People are being killed. It happened in Sokoto with the case of Deborah. Not long after that, it happened again to a Muslim. And then people started saying to me ‘so, it is not (restricted to) only you Christians.
“It is the same perverted interpretation of religion. The circumstances don’t change because it is happening to Muslims too.”
