The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, gave this commendation in his keynote address at the first quarterly meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Ciuncil (NIREC) taking place in Abuja.
His words: “Let me begin by conveying the warm felicitations of His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He has requested me to commend your eminences for the stabilising roles you all have individually and collectively played nationwide since his administration came into office. He has also sent assurances that NIREC as an institution for peace and nation building shall remain a key development partner for his administration.
Your Eminences, distinguished members, this first quarter 2024 meeting is holding at a time when the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is marking the first anniversary of his assumption of office. This gives the administration the opportunity to render an account of stewardship to the Nigerian people. 4. Particularly, the theme for this meeting is “THE ROLE OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN COMBATING CORRUPTION AND CYBER CRIME” is very appropriate as the government deepens its efforts in the fight against corruption, the most significant vice that has retarded Nigeria’s development.
“Your synergy with government in this direction underscores the importance of the roles of traditional and faith-based institutions in shaping the citizenry.
“In the light of the foregoing, I wish to note with interest and satisfaction that the chairmen of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) have been invited as key speakers during this opening ceremony. I implore you all to listen to them attentively, come up with strategies for fight corruption and other vices, and resolve to take the messages back to the grass roots and your various congregations.
“Your eminencies, this administration, since inception, has remained focused on saving the economy of our nation through the implementation of programs under the Renewed Hope Agenda. Difficult decisions have been taken to prevent a total collapse of the system, and the government has never relented in expressing its deepest sympathy with the people over the resultant hardships Nigerians are passing through. At the same time, the government has left no stone unturned to positively change the trajectory of our economy and to take sustainability measures.
“I am pleased to report that over the past one year, this administration has addressed several sectors that impact directly on the people and are also required as a foundation for future development. These include road infrastructure, transportation (aviation, waterways, CNG buses, railways), power and energy, education, agriculture and food security, access to health, industrial sector (including micro, small and Medium enterprises), social safety net programs to support the poor, elderly and vulnerable, review of tax policies and systems, creation of consumer credit scheme as well as beefing up internal and national security.
“In recognition of the impact of the challenges on workers, a wage award was also approved by the President. Currently, the new national minimum wage is being negotiated.
“I must quickly add that to enjoy the gains of all these efforts, all hands must remain on deck to fight corruption, cybercrime and associated criminal tendencies, for the purpose of restoring our values and national integrity.
“Let me remind us that corruption is a deadly virus that destroys the fabrics of a nation in multilayer and multi- dimensional ways. Simply put, corruption is the misuse and betrayal of trust, power, and authority for whatever purpose. Without formidable systems, institutions, integrity and character, no system and no individual can be insulated from it. It is not unusual, therefore, to find corruption within the political, traditional, faith-based, community, social, youth, and family institutions and systems. Key players in these condemnable acts include parents, community leaders, business leaders, politicians, religious leaders, public sector employees, security agents, public office holders, judges, journalists, administrators of a schools or anyone entrusted with power and authority. The list is endless, but I wish to point out that it does not discriminate on the basis of gender, age demographics, and status.
“Corruption manifests itself in acts of dishonesty, and it is couched in depravity, inducement to do the wrong through improper and unlawful means. Corruption is an abuse of integrity and transparency by any person who has authority or power. This abuse can take the form of financial and non-financial advantages for selfish gains.
“Most worrisome today, Your eminences, is the meteoric but infamous rise in Cybercrime among our youths on various technology platforms. The cancer of cybercrime is fast spreading globally with devastating consequences. These include in terrorism, illicit monetary flow, ritual activities to acquire riches, modern slavery and human trafficking, disruption of economic systems through hacking and destruction of moral values through pornography, etc.
“The institutional battle to fight the cybercrime has been through the EFCC, ICPC, the Police, associated technology based efforts and the judiciary. Moderate successes have been recorded, especially in the areas of apprehension, prosecution, and convictions, as this remains a work in progress. This administration shall leave no stone unturned in exterminating the scrouge.
“Your eminences, addressing this challenge is assuming the dimension of an emergency because of the involvement of scores of our youths who are leaders of tomorrow. Statistics as the EFCC will present later, point at the institutions of higher learning as breeding grounds. There is an urgency, therefore, in the collaboration that we want to forge in addressing it.
“As you deliberate on the issue of corruption as a national malaise and the rising cybercrime activities, I urge you to deploy your moral, religious and traditional knowledge and authority to come up with strategies that will help the government to tackle them. Your partnership is important because all Nigerian align with you in every position you occupy, “he added.
Earlier, in his welcome remarks, the President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), His Eminence, Archbishop (Dr) Daniel C. Okoh and also Co-chairman of Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) thanked for keeping Nigeria united in one nation despite our differences and numerous socio-economic challenges that daily confront us.
His words: “I want to extend my sincere greetings to His Excellency, Sen. Dr. George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), for your support and commitment towards interfaith dialogue and unity in Nigeria. My prayer for you is that the Almighty God will strengthen your hands to always provide the resources that is needed by this council to promote peaceful co-existence of people of all faith in the country and social cohesion that will bring about sustainable development. We are grateful for your time and availability, Your Excellency!
“Distinguished religious leaders, one of the questions that is prominent on the lips of journalists when they interview us on national issues is to explain the contradiction of flourishing religiosity in the midst of rising extreme materialism and corruption in our society. I believe that this sort of question subtly challenges us to re-examine our works – which is to lead the people on the right path. To help us do this, we must go back to the teaching of the Holy books. Jesus Christ, our Lord, in response to the question by a lawyer of what is the first and great commandment in law, said, “Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment” (Matthew 22:35-38). From what we experience today, it is obvious that there is a deviation from the love of God, our maker, to the love of money that Apostle Paul warned us that is the root of all evil (1Tim 6:10). He said, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. The challenge and the task before us is to give a strong and clear moral leadership to bring down the altar of materialism and champion the movement to change the orientation that worships materialism in our people, so that systemic corruption can be reduced to the lowest levels.
“The theme of this quarterly meeting is: “The Role of Religious Leaders in Combating Corruption and Cybercrime”. It is hoped that this will afford us the opportunity to sincerely evaluate our leadership and encourage one another to continue in our commitment to work towards a better society for all. Last week in Lisbon, while we were having a conversation on the ills of the society, a friend of mine lamented the failure of leaders in addressing the ills of the society with a thought-provoking statement. He said, “those who should lead are not leading”. He meant that leaders are not showing good examples. Could this be true about some religious leaders? To give moral leadership, one must have moral authority, and to have moral authority is to do what is right. With strong moral authority, we can speak up and push back the obsession to acquire material wealth by imparting the national values on our followers using every platform available to us.
“Today, we shall hear from two speakers who are authorities in anti-corruption and anti-crime campaign and I believe that their presentations will reveal various forms of cybercrime and corruption in Nigeria which will help us not only to speak up against corruption and cybercrime in a general sense but to sharpen our strategies in the battle that must be won over wickedness. On behalf of the Council, I welcome them to this first quarterly meeting and pray that God will prosper their works.
“Finally, I call on my fellow religious leaders to join hands in this important fight. Together, we can make a difference and build a more just and ethical society for future generation’s”, he also added.
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