By Sandra Umeh
A Christian Counsellor, Pastor Chidiebere Okoli, on Monday in Lagos, called on Nigerians to imbibe the virtue of love for neighbours espicially with the COVID-19 pandemic saga.
Okoli, resident Pastor of the Living Word Revival Assembly, Ikotun, Lagos, made the call while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on ways to thrive during the duration of the COVID-19 lockdown.
According to her, love creates great hope and assurances even during the COVID-19 lockdown.
NAN reports that two states, Lagos and Ogun and Abuja, have been on lockdown since March through a Federal Government’s directive, following a rise in cases of Coronavirus.
She said that this was not the time to “mind our businesses” but a time to look out for neighbours as well as other vulnerable members in the immediate environment.
“Love is the ultimate gift one can offer another during this period and this can be done in so many ways, beginning with those around you.
“Just as the doctors, nurses and other health care providers have sacrificed their time for the sake of the sick and those laden with the COVID-19 disease, we too can be significant in our own little ways.
“Love is what we need as a people in a time like this. If we work together in love, fewer people will be lost.
“If we develop the habit of checking on our neighbours, friends, or relatives, placing calls across to them often to ask about their well-being, it will go a long way in easing the tide of the moment.
“We now hear of cases of robbery, burglary and other vices prevalent in the society nowadays. So, we must ask ourselves, when last did I put a call across to my friends and neighbours,’’ she said.
Okoli said this was not the time for wasteful spending or wasting of food, as next door neighbours might be in need of that excess food to be thrown away. (NAN)
