8TH GENERAL SYNOD MEETING HELD AT THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS, ONITSHA: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 – THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2005
MESSAGE TO THE NATION
PREAMBLE:
At the 8th General Synod of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) focusing on the theme: “THE BODY OF CHRIST” with the Most Revd Peter Akinola, D.D., C.O.N., the Archbishop, Metropolitan and the Primate of All Nigeria presiding, the following message is hereby sent to the Nation:
COMMENDATION OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT:
The General Synod thanks the Anambra State Governor, His Excellency, Dr Chris Ngige, and the entire people of Anambra State, for their goodwill and hospitality.
NATIONAL ECUMENICAL CENTRE, ABUJA:
The Church appreciates the efforts of the President of Nigeria, His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, towards the completion of the National Ecumenical Centre, Abuja and calls on all especially Christians in Nigeria to see the Centre as a symbol of unity and work towards achieving this goal.
NATIONAL UNITY:
The Church, mindful of the multi-ethnic profile of Nigeria and its attendant problems urges the Federal Government to continue with policies that will further cement our unity as a nation devoid of tribalism and nepotism with the Church of Nigeria herself modelling same for the nation.
KILLER DISEASES:
The Synod commends the effort of the government in collaborating with other agencies in the fight against HIV/AIDS and calls on other stake-holders to throw their full weight and resources behind this titanic battle against this scourge of HIV/AIDS and adopt a holistic approach towards arresting the other fatal diseases such as Malaria, Diabetes, Tuberculosis, etc.
POVERTY ALLEVIATION:
The synod commends the effort of the government in putting up programmes for poverty alleviation, but observes with worry that efforts to make the poor benefit from the programme are hampered by uncontrollable inflation, the activities of economic middlemen, and saboteurs, and calls on the government to make the poverty alleviation what it ought to be.
RETURN OF SCHOOLS:
The Synod commends the Lagos State Governor, His Excellency, Chief Bola Tinubu for the return of Forty-Eight (48) Schools to their original owners and calls on other governors who have not done so, to follow this example in the interest of quality education and fair play/justice. The church views this matter as non-negotiable because at the time the schools were taken over by the government, it was confiscated with fiat and it would only be fair if this present civilian government takes the call for the return of these schools seriously and as a matter of right and not a privilege.
MEDIA INFLUENCE:
The Church commends the effort of the Information Technology and Nigeria Film Censorship Unit, for their efforts at dissemination of information, but observes with horror, the rate at which uncensored films and home videos penetrate/infiltrate our Television Networks, creating negative influence on the Young People. The church calls on parents, teachers and the government to rise against this threat of ethical bankruptcy and curb the evil influence of uncensored films.
SECURITY:
The Synod commends the efforts of the government in equipping law enforcement agencies to combat the social ills in the society, but decries the persistent upsurge in armed banditry and wanton destruction of lives and property. The church calls on every body to be vigilant, reporting suspicious elements to law enforcement agents, while urging the government to leave no stone unturned in the bid to protect the lives and properties of every citizen.
NATIONAL POLITICAL REFORMS CONFERENCE:
The Church commends the effort of the government to create a forum in which all the interest (ethnic) groups in Nigeria were able to talk frankly about the state of things and the future of this nation, and urges the government to put into effect those decisions arrived at during the Conference for justice and unity in the nation.
THE NATIONAL CENSUS:
The Church of Nigeria fully supports the intention to obtain a credible and accurate data for strategic planning and sustainable development of the country. The church is however of the view that the proposed exclusion of ethnic and religious data from the census will make a mockery of the exercise since we must have a complete statistical data about individual persons in Nigeria and about Nigeria.
Presently, tribe and religion are important criteria which attract greater consideration than merit for admission into educational institutions, recruitment, appointment and deployment of pubic officers, even in the provision and distribution of facilities.
The Synod do not see how the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which endpins the reflection of Federal Character can be transparently implemented without data on the tribe and religion of every Nigerian.
THE RUSH TOWARDS 2007:
The Church notes with alarm the gradual but steady heating up of the polity by the political class. A situation where public officers abandon their responsibilities, channelling every effort towards the 2007 elections, is as dangerous as it is counter productive. The Church calls on our politicians to learn to live one day at a time; and also to practice politics without bitterness; and understand that the future belongs to God and He alone guides our destiny.
CORRUPTION:
The Synod applauds the crusade against corruption being championed by His Excellency, President Olusegun Obasanjo, and calls on Mr President to beware of pandering to the seduction of Sacred Cows. The Synod recommends the establishment of an effective monitoring outfit for both the government and the private sectors with a view to stamping out this embarrassing menacing reputation.
NATIONAL ROAD NETWORK:
The Church commends the Federal Government for efforts in building new roads, but is worried that in spite of huge allocations of money for the construction and rehabilitations of roads by the Federal Government most roads in Nigeria have remained death traps. It therefore calls on the Presidency to urgently take necessary steps to ensure that our roads are improved upon. Again efforts should be made to monitor government agencies and/or establishments responsible for road construction and maintenance such as the Federal Ministry of Works, to ensure that money meant for the improvement of our road network are not diverted to private or other uses.
FUEL SITUATION:
The Synod notes with dismay the hardship to which Nigerians are subjected whenever the price of crude oil rises or falls in the international market. That the sixth oil-producing nation in the whole world still imports refined petroleum products is not only sad but also regrettable. The church furthermore frowns at the inability of the government to listen to the call and persuasions/appeals to rescind its decision to increase the pump price of petrol (the ninth since the inception of this administration) at such a difficult time makes the church feel very sad. The church therefore calls on the government to convince Nigerians especially the impoverished masses that this natural deposit is a blessing and not a curse to the people of this land.
While urging Nigerians to heed government’s appeal to make more sacrifices for the good of the nation, the church also calls on our government functionaries and public officers to do the same by watching their ostentatious life style.
IMMUNITY CLAUSE:
The Synod appreciates the wisdom of the Framers of our Constitution in providing immunity to our leaders. The Synod notes with dismay that this immunity clause seems to be blanket.
The public office holders who enjoy immunity under the constitution should live above board and appreciate that immunity from prosecution does not mean immunity from investigation.
When leaders are clearly living beyond their means, or where there is evidence of funds being transferred outside the State into foreign bank accounts, if the immunity clause should be called to their aid, it makes the whole idea ridiculous. The church therefore calls on all stake-holders in this nation to set in motion the Federal Government machinery to remove this “dubious cover” from all public office holders.
CHRISTIAN ORTHODOX DOCTRINE ON HUMAN SEXUALITY:
The Synod condemns the position the House of Bishops of the Church of England has taken regarding human sexuality which runs contrary to the decision taken at the All Primates Meetings, and commends the untiring effort of our Primate and other like-minded Primates for maintaining their stand on Christian orthodoxy, and calls on all doctrinally alert Anglican to stand up in defence of New Testament Christianity, as opposed to the revisionist theology of ECUSA, the Church of Canada and the Church of England.
OUR SYMPATHY:
The Church notes with deep sympathy, the unprecedented rate of natural and human disaster around the world especially the hurricane Katrina havoc in New Orleans; terrorists attack in London, flooding in Jalingo Nigeria, and other parts of the world, and expresses its condolences to the families of the victims, the government and people of the United States of America, United Kingdom, and others, and prays that God will save humanity such horrors.
Signed
The Most Rev’d Peter J. Akionla, CON, DD
Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria
