President and
founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, on Sunday, in
Ota, Ogun State, said God had revealed the mystery of the Boko Haram since
1990s, noting that it has no political connotation, but purely an Islamic war,
trying to destabilise this country through killing of pastors and burning of
churches.
“Tell me, how many
mosques and Muslim clerics had they burnt and killed so far?” He asked. In a situation like
this, according to Bishop Oyedepo, “we need an urgent call for concerted
intercessions.”
On the Chibok
schoolgirls, Oyedepo said, “the case of the abducted over 200 Chibok girls is a
matter of grave concern and assault on the nation and the church of Christ in
particular.
“As you might be
aware, Chibok is largely a Christian community and 80-90 per cent of these
girls are Christians. This is apart from thousands of believers and a number of
pastors, who had been slain— mainly “during worship services in churches from
2010 till date.
“We must arise and
silence this evil group called Boko Haram.”
He also implored
members across the country to desist from act of waste, saying a situation
where Nigerians spend a whopping sum of N499 billion monthly on recharge cards
is wastage.
Bishop Oyedepo, who
said he was surprised when he received the infomation, therefore, admonished
members to stop living lives without budget, adding that it was even bad to
have more than one phone.
‘Boko Haram, enemy
of every Nigerian’
In another
development, the Primate of Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), The Most
Reverend Nicholas Okoh, declared the dreaded Boko Haram Islamic sect as enemy
of mankind, which should be fought and conquered by all.
He made this remark
on Sunday, after the service for the presentation of four newly-elected archbishops
of the church and the dedication of the new Cathedral Church of St. Peter,
Minna, Niger State.
The cleric said the
group, whose dreaded activities had claimed over 4,000 lives, had become evil
that must be do neaway with, adding that all must rise to wage war against the
sect, in order to restore peace to the country.
According to him,
“we have evil at our doorsteps being perpetrated by the Boko Haram. The group
is nothing, but an enemy of mankind.
“Let every
Nigerian, irrespective of faith, tribe or political affiliation, rise to fight
this our common enemy. We all should say no to Boko Haram.”
He then warned that
the war against the group was not exclusive, but collective battle, if we don’t
want the sect to spell doom on the nation.
“If we don’t say no
to the Boko Haram, it will consume all of us. Everybody should say no to the
Boko Haram. It is not a one-man problem. So, if we don’t resolve to stand
against this evil (Boko Haram sect), it will consume everybody.”
He debunked the
claim that the church had been lukewarm in the country; rather, he said it had
continued to provide meaningful and well-thought-out advice to those in
positions of authority at all levels of governance.
A special prayer
session for peace of the nation and quick release of the abducted Chibok
schoolgirls by the Boko Haram was led by the Bishop of Calabar, Right Reverend
Tunde Adeleye.
Boko Haram founded
in kingdom of hell —Maku
Minister of
Information, Mr Labaran Maku, on Sunday, said the Boko Haram sect, which had
continued to terrorise parts of the country, was founded in the kingdom of hell
and called on Nigerians to rise up in prayers and support the ongoing efforts
of the Federal Government to defeat terrorism and criminality in the country.
He attributed the
insurgency in parts of the country to the manifestation of the spiritual
struggle between the forces of light and darkness and expressed the belief that
light would always triumph over darkness.
Speaking at a
special church service for peace held at the Mountain of Fire and Miracles
Ministry, Utako, Abuja, the minister urged citizens to eschew pride and ego and
support the government of President Jonathan in its efforts to return the
country to the path of peace and sustainable development.
The church service
was the climax of events lined up by the Peace Intercessors Group, a
non-government organisation, to commit Nigeria to prayers and call for
citizens’ participation in the campaign to conquer insurgents in the country.
The minister noted
that there was the need for states and local governments to organise their
people in such a way that they would always be vigilant and report suspicious
movements and characters to the authorities for prompt action.
Source: Tribune