CAN decries insecurity, rejects shifting of polls

THE Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), South West zone and Founder, Christian Welfare Initiative (CWI), Archbishop Magnus Adeyemi Atilade has called on the government to improve efforts in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency in the country.

   He also condemned calls for the postponement of the general elections, stating that it is only the electoral body that has the right to state whether or not it is ready to conduct the elections.

   Speaking at a press conference in Lagos tagged ‘State of the Nation’, Atilade frowned at a situation in which the leaders are busy doing some other things while a certain group of people are in some parts of the country killing and destroying lives and properties, while at the same time hoisting their own flags of a separate nation in the nation.

   He stated that the state of security in the country should be the number one challenge and concern of everybody, urging government to brace up to ensure that the insurgents are flushed out of the country.

   “The state of security in the country remains our number one challenge. We need to deploy local and international forces to wipe out this local and foreign terrorist groups threatening, destroying, killing and kidnapping innocent Nigerians from our country, once and for all. The situation is approaching a disgraceful calamity, which is ridiculing all claims to nationhood. Enough is enough! Boko Haram insurgencies must be defeated and eradicated from our society by all means,” he said.

   The South West CAN chairman called out to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to speak out for people to know the challenges they are facing.

   He frowned at the call made by certain individuals in the government that the coming elections be postponed, describing this as “unfair”, and pointing out that they have not given the people the reasons why they are suggesting the idea.

   He said: “You cannot shift the goal post after a match has started. It is INEC that can tell the nation if they are not ready before we can consider change in date of election.”

   “It would be dangerous for anybody to unilaterally suggest that the elections be postponed and there will be no hiding place for them if the people do not support the ideas they are putting across.”

   Speaking further, Atilade described the reduction in the price of petrol by the Federal Government as insignificant, stating that it is not commensurate with the fall in price of oil in the international market.

   Describing the action as “a manipulation of the intelligence of Nigerians, and calling for an end to what he referred to as “suffering and smiling” by Nigerians, he proposed a reduction of the pump price to N67 or N50.

   He finally called on government to address the high unemployment rate of youths in the country, urging them to invest on skill training and agricultural programmes for them. He said this would reduce the influx of youths to urban areas in search of non-existing jobs and thereby shooting up the cost of living in those areas.