We, the Catholic Bishops of
Ibadan Ecclesiastical Prov-
ince, comprising Ibadan
Archdiocese, Ilorin, Ondo,
Ekiti, Oyo and Osogbo Dioceses, have met
at the Jubilee Conference Centre Oke Ado,
Ibadan from 3rd to 4th February, 2020.
After prayerful deliberations on matters
of importance to our Church in Ibadan
Province and Nigeria, we now prayerfully
issue the following Communique:
- New Year, New Hope
The new year 2020 gives all Nigerians
another opportunity to echo the now
familiar saying that God is good to his
people all the time. We acknowledge that
even when we as human beings fail in our
duties and commitments God remains
steadfast and merciful. The life and graces
we enjoy at this moment are all evidence
that if we do our best to follow his ways
and play our part in building his kingdom
of peace and justice, our hopes for a better
world can still be fulfilled. His kingdom
beckons us now to build a better world for
the good of all. - Worsening Situation of Se-
curity of Life and Property
Human life seems to have lost value in
Nigeria. At the beginning of last year, we
cried out like all Nigerians did against the
woeful security situation at that time. We
issued a message of hope calling on all Ni-
gerians to work together with the govern-
ment and security agencies to secure the
life and property of all without discrim-
ination. Today, a year later, things have
become much worse. Nigeria is in securi-
ty dire-straits. Only few Nigerians in any
part of the country can sleep with two eyes
closed. We lament that Nigerians are being
slaughtered daily by terrorists, criminals
and so-called herdsmen on the roads, in
their farms and even in their homes. With
the security architecture in Nigeria seem-
ingly on auto-pilot, the country is clearly
drifting and needs decisive action to re-
store professionalism and effectiveness. As
Bishops, we strongly believe in prayer and
in the power of God to save, but we must
challenge all those in position of authori-
ty that they simply must wake up and do
more than pay mere lip service to the issue
of security in our country, Nigeria.
- The Amotekun Initiative
The Church stands for the sanctity of life.
It is a constitutional fact that the primary
duty of government is the protection of
lives and property. In this regard, we com-
mend the action of the Governors of the
Southwestern Region who acted across
party and religious lines to set up the
South Western Security Network (SWSN),
tagged: Amotekun. With this initiative,
they have responded to their duty as Chief
Security Officers of their States to secure
lives and property of all in the Southwest-
ern Region of Nigeria. The security of lives
is not exclusive to any organization. So,
we urge the Federal Government to sup-
port and regulate Amotekun and other
such organs in Nigeria as necessary com-
plements to the efforts of the police and
other security agencies. The Amotekun
outfit is a metaphor for the utmost need
for leaders to cater for the welfare of all
those who are placed under their care, ir-
respective of tribe or religion. If well-regu-
lated and groomed, it will surely bring the
much-needed improvement to peace and
public order in the Southwest of Nigeria.
- Recent Mindless Murders in
Nigeria
A new peak in Nigeria’s sad situation
was the beheading of Rev. Lawan Andimi,
Chairman, Christian Association of Nige-
ria, (CAN), Michika Local Government
Area in Adamawa State and the killing of
a major seminarian, Michael Nnadi. We
commiserate with the Bishop, Catholic
Diocese of Sokoto, Most Rev Matthew
Hassan Kukah and the Christian Asso-
ciation of Nigeria, (CAN) on these sad
occurrences. May their gentle souls and
the souls of all those who have been killed
in similar circumstances, rest in perfect
peace. We condole with and pray for all
bereaved families and we urge the relevant
authorities to wake up to their responsibil-
ities and bring the perpetrators of this and
other such dastardly acts to justice.
- Low Standards for Truth and
Falsehood
We are sad to note that more and more,
propaganda seems to interfere with pol-
icy and concrete action in Nigeria. The
fiercely defensive reaction of government
officials and spokesmen to even construc-
tive and positive criticisms, often gives the
impression that we cherish only positive
comments about the government of the
day. This is not a healthy sign! Notably,
authentic democracy derives its strength
from the quality and diversity of the criti-
cisms which it accommodates. We cannot
afford to tag every criticism as a negative
attack on the government of the day be-
cause no country can survive under such
paranoia.
- Sustaining the formation
and empowerment of our
Youths
Nigerian youths constitute a large part of
the country’s wealth and potential. How-
ever, we can expect to reap dividends from
their talent and future if only we invest in
them today. We therefore enjoin the gov-
ernment at all levels, relevant authorities
and all stakeholders to invest more re-
sources in the education sector where the
youths are formed and empowered for the
future. Without redressing the damage
already done in this sector, much of the
effort being made today to sanitise society
will be a waste. We commend those who
provide employment opportunities for
our teeming population not to relent and
we call on well-meaning people to create
more employment opportunities for the
unemployed among us.
We challenge families and guardians,
religious leaders, teachers, formators and
political leaders to address the issue of
immorality among the youths. Some of
this is provoked by some unscrupulous
entertainers and artistes who are indis-
criminately celebrated by the media. The
upbringing and formation of the youths
must be taken as the responsibility of all
in the society.
- Congratulations to Osogbo
Diocese at 25
We congratulate Most Rev. Gabriel Leke
Abegunrin, first Bishop of Osogbo Dio-
cese on his Silver Jubilee as Bishop, Bish-
op John Akinkunmi Oyejola, the current
Bishop of the Diocese, the Clergy, Reli-
gious and Lay Faithful of the Catholic Di-
ocese of Osogbo on the Silver Jubilee of the
Diocese’s inauguration. Since its establish-
ment in 1995 Osogbo Diocese has grown
in leaps and bounds, pastorally, structur-
ally and in spiritual and material graces.
May the ongoing celebration which was
planned to last for a year and will con-
clude on 13th May, 2020, bring more de-
velopment and progress in evangelization
and in the mission of the Church within
that Ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
- Celebration of the Sunday of
the Word of God
We thank God for the inspiration and
leadership of Pope Francis who has estab-
lished the annual celebration, henceforth,
of the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time in
the Liturgical Year as the Sunday of the
Word of God. The purpose of the celebra-
tion, well explained in his apostolic letter:
“Aperuit Illis”, (He opened their minds), is
to help the faithful rediscover devotion to
the study, appropriation and dissemina-
tion of the word of God. It is also a call to
celebrate ecumenical life and unity in the
Church. The occasion was marked with
great solemnity for the first time on Jan-
uary 26, 2020, in the Church all over the
world. We therefore call on the Clergy,
Religious and all Christians to make the
word of God the foundation of their unity
and life at all times.
- Conclusion
As we conclude this Communique,
we invoke the mercy of God upon our
Church and our country, Nigeria, that he
may guide us by his mighty hand and Holy
Spirit. May he grant divine wisdom to all
our leaders that they may do what pleas-
es him and lead God’s people aright. That
way God’s favour, already granted to this
land flowing with milk and honey, will be
more manifest and God’s people shall be
filled with his good things (Ps 65:4).
Most Rev. Gabriel Abegunrin
President
Most Rev. John Oyejola
Secretary
