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From Noah Ebije, Kaduna
Bishop Timothy Yahaya of Anglican communion, Kaduna Diocese has advised the federal government to apply what he called civil war strategy against the alarming rate of terrorists attacks and killings in the country.
Bishop Yahaya however, noted that during the Nigerian civil war, arguably, despite 10,000 population of the armed forces, 250,000 soldiers were recruited within six months to fight the war.
To this end, the Anglican Cleric urged the federal government to recruit more soldiers to fight terrorists to a standstill and bring the attacks and killings to an end in the country without further delay.
The clergyman who spoke to newsmen on Monday on his new year message to Nigerians, also advised the federal government to revive rubber, cocoa, palm plantations and groundnut pyramids to discourage over-dependence on oil for national development through agriculture.
Bishop Yahaya said, “I want to plead with our government, the rate of insecurity in this country is becoming very alarming whether we believe it or not. The strategy may not be correct; or the strategy is correct, but the manpower is low. During the Nigerian civil war, I am not sure we had up to 10,000 soldiers, but in six months we were able to recruit 250,000, that was in the years of civil war, how many are we as Nigerians then, what was our population. Many years later today, the number of boots we have on ground is not up to the number we had during the civil war. Are we progressing or retrogressing? And whether we like it or not, this war cannot be decisively prosecuted with the number of soldiers we have.
“I am not saying that only arms will solve this problems. We need to call ethnic nationalities, sit down with them, everybody must be a stakeholder. Let us know what is their grievances. Many years later, by what I see happening in this country, in all parts of the country, not only one part of the country, Nigeria is still a geographical expression like late Chief Obafemi Awolowo said many years back. People don’t feel a sense of belonging in our nation. We need to sit down and ask ourselves; which way forward.
“My new year message to Nigerians is particularly to the federal government of Nigeria. Number one, people are hungry in a land where we can export food better than Ukraine and Russia. Israel is a very small State, not up to one State in Nigeria. It can feed the whole Middle East. What are we doing with the potentials of our agriculture. And I dare to say, and I want to be challenged that we did Anchor borrower programme, we didn’t the money anywhere in agriculture. When we talk agriculture, we talk service delivery in agriculture. The money goes to the politicians to share, I pray this government will take a look.
“Number Two, farm inputs, we must make sure that our farmers get the right inputs because agriculture is going too scientific and we are still at the stone age. Number three, people who are in government should be promise keeper, if tell us that our refineries will work in 2024, they should work. We keep hearing billions of dollars being spent on Turn Around Maintenance and we don’t see any thing on ground. For crying out loud, in your personal money you took to the market, can’t you see what you brought home? .
“Number four, our message to the federal government is the issue of power supply, no nation can progress without power, up North here, I wonder what our policy makers are thinking. We only need national grid here for industries. What are we doing with the Solar energy that we have here. We are a country that is so blessed but we don’t see the blessings we wasted. So I want to call on the government and plead with them, why not step up our games and make sure that solar energy becomes our source of energy.
“Can you imagine we are talking about industrialisation and Ajaokuta Steel Rolling mill lying waste. I wonder what our policy makers are thinking. When Ajaokuta starts working, it will roll dollars more than oil we are relying upon. Again on agriculture, where is the rubber, where is the cocoa, where is the groundnut pyramid, where is the palm oil. Why have we decided to abandon what other nations borrowed from us? A barrel of palm oil cost more than a barrel of crude oil. Go check the world market. So we can make it in Palm oil than crude oil.
“And we are pretending that we are a poor nation. I want to plead with our leadership that if they want to write their names in gold, they cannot be politically correct; what do I mean by politically correct, they sit down there and share the national cake, and forget about the real foundation of this country. That is not what we want.
“My message to our national leaders is that they need to sit up as patriotic Nigerians. When we have patriotic Nigerians, I tell you Nigeria will be great again. But when our national assembly members are calling for cars from Overseas in a weak economy, instead of buying Nigeria made cars, that is not patriotism at all, that is not nationalism at all. How can you go and be buying foreign cars, a country of wealth importing poverty. This is what we do in this country. Look at brain drain that is taking place in our country. It looks like it is normal.
“For me as a leader, the way we are treating Nigeria, we treat Nigeria as an orphan. It has no father, no mother. But I pray that the Renew Hope will not be hope on paper, not as a propaganda. Let it be a renew hope for the common man to enjoy the value for his money when he goes to the market. Let it be renew hope for the common man to go to school, hospitals”
