The Catholic Communicators, operating under the aegis of SIGNIS Nigeria, have denounced attacks on Christian worshipers in the nation and urged federal legislators to pass legislation allowing Nigerians to possess firearms for self-defense against marauding bandits.
The call came in response to the ongoing murder of Christians, particularly the kidnapping of Catholic priests for ransom and their murder by armed terrorists.
It’s time for Nigerians, regardless of their religious preferences, to be more security conscious, the Association said in a statement on Monday.
“Recently, there have been more attacks on Catholic churches, which have resulted in the deaths of several people, including priests. These attacks have the potential to turn into a violent orgy, which could have serious repercussions for the stability and peace of the nation.
“SIGNIS Nigeria challenged the legislative arm of government across all levels to explore the possibility of enacting a law that would enable Nigerians to own arms to defend themselves and their families against arbitrary attacks by gunmen as is now being championed by the Zamfara State government,” it read.
The association specifically bemoaned the apparent silence of President Muhammadu Buhari in the face of violent attacks on Christian communities.
In a joint statement, the Association’s president, Patrick Alumuku, and general secretary, Tony Agbugba, stated that “this apparent silence does not in any way reassure Nigerians that the government is on top of the situation.”
They questioned why the bandits had suddenly developed a vendetta against safe clerics and defenceless Christians who pose no threat to society, and why they were being harassed and killed.
To secure clerics, who are currently targets of violent attacks, the association, however, urged religious worshippers to implement strict security measures.
The weekend saw the murder of two priests in Kaduna and Edo by bandits. On June 25, after a suspected bandit raid at a farm in Kujama, Nigeria, on the Kaduna-Kachia road, Vitus Borogo, a priest serving in the Archdiocese of Kaduna, was killed.
Christopher Odia was taken from his rectory at St. Michael Catholic Church in Ikabigbo, Uzairue, the following day, on June 26, and his kidnappers killed him later that night.
Remember how 40 worshipers were killed in a suspected terrorist attack on a Catholic church on June 5 in Owo, Ondo state? Additionally, three people were killed in an attack on a Baptist church in Kaduna, and over thirty worshipers were reportedly kidnapped.
