President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Archbushop Daniel C. Okoh, has said the image of Nigeria has gone so low, that “every citizen is perceived as either a thief or a begger who has nothing to offer.”
Okoh stated this Thursday in his goodwill message at the opening ceremony of the third Abuja Catholic Archdiocesan General Assembly with theme, “Witness in Politics: The Role of the Catholic Faithful, than now” held at the Our Lady Queen of Nigeria Pro-Cathedral Garki, Abuja.
He noted that Nigeria is currently passing through challenging times, stressing that all hands must be on deck in order to salvage it lest it descends into a state of anarchy.
“He said, “it is our individual and collective responsibility to negate such perception by conducting ourselves in our daily lives (both private and public) in the light of the values that we learnt from our Lord, Jesus Christ.
He therefore task those who engage in partisan politics to remember that we need to provide leadership in showing these right values so that we can influence good governance that will bring about a peaceful and prosperous nation.
“Even as Christian politicians mix up with the good, the bad and the ugly, they should not envy the wicked as Psalm 37 teaches us because we know that their ways end in destruction. We must bring the good news of our Lord to bring the long desired change in governance.
“”In making our contributions to national development one may ask: What kind of values do we bring to political positions? What inspires those who aspire to positions of political authority? What is the motivation?
“We must turn the world upside down as the apostles of old (Acts 17:6).In politics, Christians must occupy our space and participate as the light in darkness; resisting all forms of intimidation,” he urged.
The CAN President lauded the Catholic Church for being in forefront of preaching the gospel of Lord Jesus Christ, which he added is the only succour amidst the vicissitude of life.
“I must therefore appreciate the Catholic Church, most especially the Archdiocese of Abuja for always being in the lead to bring the saving light of Jesus to our national conversations and practical living.
“I am not unaware of the several giant strides of the Archdiocese most especially in raising prophetic voice against injustice, uplifting the downtrodden and equipping believers for positive transformation of our society,” he added.