- We are not spectators, we are custodians of moral clarity – Bishop Kukah
- Care for the earth is not optional, it is mandatory –Archbishop Martins
Religious leaders in Nigeria have been called to step out of the pulpit and into the frontline of the nation’s environmental battle, as Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Rev. (Dr.) Matthew Hassan Kukah, declared that faith leaders are “custodians of moral clarity” with a divine duty to compel the state to protect the earth. Bishop Kukah made the declaration in Lagos while delivering the 24th Chief S. L. Edu Memorial Lecture organised by the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), a flagship annual forum on conservation supported by Chevron and other partners.
Speaking on the theme “To Have and to Hold: Faith and Care of the Environment,” the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese warned that Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, poverty, displacement and communal violence are deeply rooted in environmental abuse, ecological injustice and reckless exploitation of natural resources. “Religious leaders are not spectators in the environmental crisis. Our business is not just to pray. We are custodians of moral clarity.
The mission is to interpret the mind of God and compel the state to live according to the laws of God,” he said, drawing loud applause from the packed audience. According to him, the earth was entrusted to humanity by God in trust, not for destruction. The prelate described pollution, deforestation, illegal mining and unregulated oil extraction as violations of divine mandate and “sins against future generations.” “Whatever God has given us was not meant for a particular class—politicians, businessmen or political parties. These resources were given for the welfare of all. Yet, a privileged few benefit, while the majority suffer hunger, displacement and insecurity,” he said.
Resource wars, real cause of conflict Bishop Kukah dismissed the popular narrative that Africa’s conflicts are mainly ethnic or religious, insisting that most are resource-driven wars disguised as communal crises. “When land is taken, water poisoned and livelihoods destroyed, grievances accumulate and violence follows. These are not just environmental crimes; they are sins against justice, sins against the poor and sins against the future,” he said. He cited the Niger Delta as a tragic example of extraction without restoration, where communities are left with polluted waters, devastated farmlands and broken social systems.
“Where the earth is exploited without restraint, fragility follows. And fragility breeds conflict,” Bishop Kukah warned. Governors, Land Use Act under fire In a stinging intervention, Bishop Kukah also accused state governors of abusing their constitutional powers over land through the Land Use Act, turning it into a weapon of dispossession and ecological destruction. “The Land Use Act has become a grave mistake. Governors have taken their power as a licensee to displace communities for cronies and private interests. This deepens injustice and generates conflict,” he said.
He argued that excessive concentration of land control has weakened traditional systems, marginalised farmers and left communities powerless when ancestral lands are seized without consent or compensation. “A state that cannot protect its land cannot protect its people,” he added. “Care for the earth is mandatory” The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, His Grace, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins, who was Special Guest of Honour, reinforced Kukah’s position, declaring that environmental care is no longer optional, but a moral obligation.
“This is a time for us to be sorry for our cruelty against the earth and to change our ways. Care for the earth is not optional; it is mandatory,” Archbishop Martins said. He linked environmental degradation directly to social injustice, noting that the poor suffer most from flooding, erosion, pollution and climate change. “Care for our common home is integral to faith and social justice. You cannot claim to serve God and destroy His creation,” the Archbishop said.
Archbishop Martins outlined concrete steps taken by the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, including youth-led environmental networks, tree-planting campaigns, advocacy against single-use plastics and promotion of renewable energy. “These are proofs that faith communities can shape values and behaviour beyond sermons,” he added. “What you sow, you reap” Chairman of the Lekki State Urban Forest and Animal Shelter Initiative, Desmond Majekodunmi, warned that environmental destruction always returns as social crisis. “What you sow is what you reap. Those who plunder the environment will face the consequences in violence, poverty and insecurity,” he said.
He linked deforestation and land misuse to rising urban crime, displacement and food shortages. Conservation is everyone’s duty Chairman of NCF’s National Executive Council, Justice Bukola Adebiyi, said the memorial lecture honours the legacy of Chief S. L. Edu, widely regarded as the father of conservation in Nigeria. She stressed that conservation is not the government’s responsibility alone. “The scale of environmental challenges demands action from everyone—faith leaders, communities, corporations and policymakers,” she said.
Justice Adebiyi praised Chevron for sustaining the lecture series since inception and supporting several conservation programmes. A moral alarm for Nigeria The event, attended by religious leaders, students, Catholic Women Organisation members, Muslim groups and environmental advocates, also featured the award of research grants to two PhD students and the presentation of a plaque to Bishop Kukah. But beyond the ceremonies, the message was clear and unsettling: Nigeria’s environmental crisis is no longer just a scientific or policy issue—it is a moral emergency.
From flooding in Lagos to desertification in the North, erosion in the East and oil pollution in the Niger Delta, speakers warned that ecological collapse is already undermining national cohesion. Without ethical restraint, moral leadership and accountability, they said, environmental destruction will continue to fuel poverty, violence and instability. As Kukah concluded: “When ecological funds are diverted, when laws are weakened and when greed replaces justice, the state loses its moral authority. And when the state loses its soul, society collapses.” In the words of Archbishop Martins: “Saving the earth is not activism. It is obedience to God.”
