Nigeria won't disintegrate
if...--House of Prayer leaders
BY IKENNA ASOMBA
As America's predictions
for the disintegration of Nigeria by 2015 continue to rent the air,
leaders of House of Prayer International Church (HPI), Lagos, have
opined that the various ethnic groups making up the nation have no
cause to part ways, if only they are all being carried along in
government's programmes.
Speaking at the 50th
Joint Service of the Western District Council of HPI, Elder Silas
Ibekwe, Chairman, HPI Editorial Board and the Editor, Apostle Nick
Oguaju averred that only the practice of true tenets of Democracy,
where resources are equitably distributed and the various ethnic
regions carried along in government's programmes will tie the country
together beyond 2015.
Elder
Ibekwe said: “Nigeria is an amalgamation by our colonial masters in
1914, and in an amalgamation, after 100 years, the people (various
ethnic groups) are allowed to sit together to decide if they want to
be together or part ways. However, it's not my wish that Nigeria
should disintegrate, but my candid opinion is that government should
carry along the various ethnic groups in its programmes. If what is
given to Peter is given to Paul, I don't think there would be
agitations by any ethnic nationality to part ways.”
On
his part, Apostle Oguaju opined that “this prediction may come
true, if the true tenets of democracy is not imbibed by Nigeria's
political leaders. Moreso if the marginalization of one ethnic group
continues, ethnic groups are not carried along in terms of equitable
distribution of the country's rich resources, I think the prediction
is bound to come true.”
In
the meantime, amidst the rising spate of terrorism and killings
culpable of tearing the nation apart, Chairman of the district,
Apostle Emma Nnabuike, had earlier posited that “the world
is devastated because the people have failed to obey the commands of
God. If people will believe and obey God's commands, worshiping on a
particular day as he commanded, amongst other divine laws, I'm of the
view that peace will reign in the world. After all, Isaiah 24 vs.5-6
told us that the earth is being punished, because people have defiled
it by breaking God's laws and violating the covenants he made to last
forever.”
On his take about the
possibility of a disintegration by 2015, Nnabuike said: “My take is
that let the will of God be done. We have no right if God destines it
to happen. However, if the disintegration will cause bloodshed and
loss of lives and properties, I would pray that the all-knowing God
don't allow it come to pass.”
In the same vein, the
cleric advised Nigerian youths seeking admission into tertiary
institutions to take up courses that will imbue in them one
vocational skill or the other. This, he own to the fact that white
collar jobs are no longer readily available for them after
graduation, which largely contributes to their indulging in various
crimes.
His words: “Although,
the unemployment syndrome is not peculiar to Nigeria alone. It's all
over the world. However, as daily reported by the media, its rate in
the country is quite alarming and our youths are swiftly taking to
all forms of crimes to get themselves busy. This is not a good
decision by any youth. My candid advice is for the youths to turn to
God for survival, because he who lives by crime and other acts of
violence die by violence according to Proverbs 1 vs. 19.”
Asked why the church
observes it's Sabbath Day on Saturday, Elder Ibekwe, a senior officer
of the Nigerian Police Force said: “My
happiness is that whatever we do here today, has already been
instituted in the Bible. God made his creation works for six days and
on the seventh day, he rested. And he mandated mankind to also rest
with him on this same day. That's what we are living by. We are only
following the steps of Jesus Christ, but it's unfortunate that even
though Jesus Christ observed this day in Luke 4 vs. 16, Mark 2 vs.
27-28, many ignorant teachers in the Christendom still posit that
Christ has nailed God's own sacred commands on the cross. This is an
aberration,” he argued.
