- Archbishop Martins urges government at all levels to alleviate poverty
The Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos has ordained ten new priests. The newly ordained priests include, Reverend Fathers Clinton Tochukwu Ekemezie, Emmanual Chibuike Canice, Ethelbert Chukwunonso Umenwanne, Thomas Aliegwu Kelechi and Gregory Uke-Atabuchi Onaji. Others are Reverend Fathers Timothy Ehizokhae Okhiria, Michael Ikechukwu Ebede, Stephen Chukwunonso Momah, Princewill Obinna Ugwumba and Patrick Sonayon Akotonayon.
Speaking at the ordination ceremony held on October 31, 2024, at the Holy Spirit Catholic Church, Onireke, Lagos, Most Rev. (Dr.) Alfred Adewale Martins, Archbishop of the Metropolitan See of Lagos, congratulated the newly ordained priests for the privilege of being called to serve in the Vineyard of the Lord as he urged them to add value to the Church. “You will do your best to ensure by your ordination, you add value to the pastoral life of the Archdiocese of Lagos; you add value to the brotherhood of the priesthood in the Archdiocese. And that, your personal growth in the dignity of the priesthood and your striving for holiness of life will be enhanced by your ordination today. May these be your lot, through Christ our Lord.”
Archbishop Martins also prayed for the families of the new priests for offering their children for services in God’s vineyard. “We congratulate the families from among whom the Lord has chosen these men. May God bless you abundantly as you leave your children freely and without any strings attached to become priests in our Archdiocese. I assure you that as you leave your children free to be part of the Archdiocese, you enter into partnership with Jesus. And anyone who enters into partnership with Jesus cannot but get dividends from that partnership. So, may the rewards of the partnership you have entered into be given to all of you, through Christ our Lord.”
The Chief Shepherd utilised the occasion of the ordination to announce the creation of two new quasi parishes. In his words, “With the addition of these new hands, we are able to pay tribute to the work that our priests do in collaboration with the religious and the lay faithful, the work that they do day in, day out, for the growth of the Church. “And I believe that one of the best ways we can pay tribute to the work that all of us do together is by today pronouncing the creation of two new quasi parishes. “From the parish of St. Andrew, Ilemba, we hereby create Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church into a quasi parish. And from the Parish of St. Francis, Idimu, we hereby create St. Ignatius of Loyola, Ikotun into a quasi parish.
We congratulate the priests and the parishioners of the mother parishes. We congratulate the parishioners of the new quasi parishes. “And we want to exhort them to remember that every honour brought upon anyone brings about corresponding responsibilities.” Most Rev. (Dr.) Martins charged the lay faithful to enhance their spiritual lives and contribute to the growth of the Church. “Therefore, new quasi parishes and indeed all parishes, but particularly the new ones, you must seek to grow in your spiritual lives. Each member of the faithful of these quasi parishes seek to grow in your individual spiritual lives.
“You must seek to engage in more intentional evangelisation efforts so that you can bring people in your areas to knowledge of Christ and to membership of the Church that He Himself founded, the holy Roman Catholic Church. “You must make your contributions to the material and spiritual good of the Church, our Church in Lagos. These are responsibilities that I wish to express today among others. Please be aware of them and take them to heart.”
He stated. The Archbishop also expressed dismay at growing poverty rate, as he enjoined government to urgently put an end to hunger and poverty in Nigeria as well as trim down the cost of governance. He said, “The cost of everything is high; food, transportation, petrol, electricity, health care, even literally, living is very, very expensive in our country. That is why we cannot but use an opportunity such as this to demand for greater effort on the part of those who rule our country, government at all levels to do more to alleviate the poverty in our land. The poverty is alarming. The poverty continues to be like a time bomb that is ticking and ticking off. It can be defused only if the efforts are more than ever before.”
He further pointed out that the budget for the office of some state governors are much higher than the internally generated revenue of such states. “In the midst of this grinding poverty, we hear that the budget for the office of some state governors are much higher than the internally generated revenue of such states. The budgets are as much higher in some instances as 200 percent over the internally generated revenue. Obviously, this means that it is necessary that government will lead by example if there is need to make sacrifices, so that our country can go back on the path of growth and productivity.”
World Bank recently released Nigeria Development Update report, offering a bleak outlook on poverty in Nigeria, as it stated that over 129 million Nigerians now live below the national poverty line. The global financial body’s report revealed that the over 129 million Nigerians who now live below the national poverty line represented a sharp rise from 40.1 per cent in 2018 to 56 per cent in 2024. The World Bank report read in parts, “With growth proving too slow to outpace inflation, poverty has risen sharply. Since 2018, the share of Nigerians living below the national poverty line16 is estimated to have risen sharply from 40.1 per cent to 56.0 per cent. “
Combined with population growth, this means that some 129 million Nigerians are living in poverty. This stark increase partly reflects Nigeria’s beleaguered growth record. Real GDP per capita has not recovered to the level it was at prior to the oil price-induced recession in 2016. While delivering the homily, Rev. Fr. Vincent Bankole urged the newly ordained priests to be on fire in the most intensive spiritual way, with the Father’s love, with the Sacred Heart, the Holy Spirit, and with the love of the people God has called and selected them to serve.
According to him, “Your priestly hearts must be alight and aglow because others need from you the want of Christ. However, a danger for every disciple, especially for a priest is to say a tepid and or a lukewarm yes to the Lord.” On their unique personalities, he said, “You have distinctive characteristics and particular gifts. Only ever compare yourself to the person Christ is calling you to be. He calls you knowing you, and loving you. Never be in competition with anyone but yourself; to be another model for young men and women in our world today.”
