Poor leadership responsible for poverty insecurity terrorism in Nigeria – cleric
Ogbonnaya Ikokwu, Umuahia
The convener of Christian Citizenship International, Pastor Emmanuel Ihim, has identified poor leadership as the root cause of poverty, insecurity and terrorism in Nigeria.
The cleric, who spoke in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, on Thursday, argued that political leaders who fail to work for the good of the common man have continued to hold the nation down, noting that many morally upright citizens shy away from politics.
He emphasised that the mandate of his organisation is to reawaken Christian believers and encourage them to rise to leadership positions in their respective states in order to rewrite Nigeria’s history.
The preacher revealed that his team intends to create awareness through the Christian Citizenship Summit, themed “Faith at the Ballot Box”, scheduled to hold in Umuahia from February 6 to 7 at the Michael Okpara Auditorium.
According to him, the summit is aimed at promoting the group’s firm and unapologetic stance, which aligns with truth, justice, service, competence and the common good of citizens.
He said, “We prioritise truth over falsehood, justice over injustice, service over exploitation, competence over mediocrity and the common good over elite capture.
“As Scripture teaches, ‘You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free’ (John 8:32). This truth guides every action we take and every decision we make.”
Pastor Ihim pointed out that his organisation is non partisan, but not non positional.
“We take clear and firm positions against injustice, corruption, incompetence and cruelty in governance,” he said.
“When those in power weaponise poverty, normalise suffering, silence dissent, entrench corruption and criminalise accountability, they cease to be mere political actors; they become moral offenders.
“As Scripture makes it clear, ‘Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people’ (Proverbs 14:34).
“Christian Citizenship cannot be neutral when our nation is in an existential crisis, when children are hungry, youths are hopeless, families are crushed by economic injustice and citizens are treated as expendable.”
He therefore urged Christians to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards as a means of preparing to select God fearing leaders ahead of the 2027 general election