Catholic Priests and lay members of the Church in the
entire Enugu Diocese turned out in their thousands for peaceful rallies in
Nsukka and Awgu dioceses.
The priests and members of the three Catholic Dioceses in
Enugu State, Nsukka, Awgu and Enugu, on Saturday, turned out in their thousands
for peaceful mass rallies tagged "Diocesan peaceful prayerful protest
march", as they protested the violent activities of herdsmen in the state
and expressed their anger at the menace
posed by herdsmen.
It was reported that the Enugu Catholic diocese shelved
its plan to march to the Government House, where they intended to deliver a
petition to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.
The Diocese had earlier announced that it would march
from the Holy Ghost Cathedral, through the streets of Enugu metropolis, to the
Government House on Saturday. But the planned march failed to hold after
Ugwuanyi and some members of the state executive council visited the church.
It was learnt that the church leadership called off the
march after they were informed of an alleged plan by miscreants including
pro-Biafra activists, to hijack the event and use the protest march to cause a
breakdown of law and order.
While addressing the Catholic faithfuls at the cathedral
during the visit, Governor Ugwuanyi said his administration was determined to
protect lives and property in the state.
He said, “On the issues you have raised in this rally, I
wish to state that I address you today not only as a Catholic but as your
governor and the Chief Security Officer of Enugu State. While taking my oath of office, I swore to do
everything within my powers to preserve the security of lives and property of
the people of Enugu State.
“You can therefore be assured that I will not fail in
this responsibility and be further assured that whatever message you convey
through me to the appropriate authorities at Abuja, will be promptly
delivered.”
The church also made known its opposition to the proposed
grazing bill in a joint press statement read by the Catholic Bishop of Enugu
Diocese, Rt. Rev. Callistus Onaga, and the bishops of Awgu and Nsukka dioceses.
“The free grazing of cattle in our area has now become a
threat not only to the growing of crops, which is the mainstay of our sedentary
people, but also to our lives. The nomadic lifestyle makes policing and the
pursuit of criminals much more complex and hazardous, while providing
terrorists like Boko Haram operatives with ready cover for penetrating every
nook and cranny of our country,” the statement said.
About Unknown
0 comments:
Post a Comment