Our lives in Kaduna have been mortgaged – Bishop Kundi
Move beyond routine verbal condemnation, KSM urges Buhari
“But the fact of the matter is that things are not good. This is not how things should be; it is just like our lives in Kaduna have been mortgaged. We, in Southern Kaduna, are no longer living the lives we used to. We had a life of freedom, but we can’t live that kind of life any longer. Our joy has been taken away. We can’t go freely to the farms as usual. Ninety per cent of the people in Southern Kaduna are farmers and hundreds of them were even dismissed from the civil service, so you can imagine the hunger and deprivation. Where will they start from? “We are tired of burying the dead. We can only stay for maybe only a week without an attack and you cannot just say the attacks are over, because before you open your mouth to say that, another one takes place. So, only God knows when they are going to end. But I’m talking about what is happening in Southern Kaduna.”
These were the assertions of Most Rev. Julius Kundi, Catholic Bishop of Kafanchan Diocese, Kaduna State, few weeks ago in a media chat, as he bemoaned the worsening state of insecurity in the State that has glaringly assumed the shape of terrorism targeted at Christians. The Catholic Church, lately, has been at the receiving end in the onslaught by terrorists and kidnappers. More so, its Priests have become endangered species, particularly in the North. On Wednesday, May 11, the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna announced the passing of Rev. Fr. Joseph Akete, Parish Priest of St. John Catholic Church, Kudenda, in kidnappers’ Den. The Priest was abducted when gunmen invaded his parish on March 8, 2022. According to Rev. Fr. Christian Okewu Emmanuel, Chancellor, Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna, the late Priest had died between April 18 and 20, 2022. The Chancellor said, “Rev. Fr. Joseph, aged 48, was kidnapped from his residence, in St. John Catholic Church, Kudenda, where he was serving as Parish Priest, on the 8th of March, 2022. “The abduction claimed the life of one of the security guards. The hoodlums deprived the Priest of taking his drugs along with him during the incident. “His own brother was killed there in his presence and after his brother was killed, his condition worsened and he died.” Barely five weeks after, the Catholic Church, yet again lost two of its Priests in less than 24 hours to unknown gunmen.

The Priests, Rev. Fr. Vitus Borogo and Rev. Fr. Christopher Odia were killed in separate attacks in their respective Dioceses penultimate weekend, the former in Kaduna Archdiocese, on Saturday, June 25, and the later in Auchi Diocese on Sunday, June 26. Aged 50, Fr. Vitus Borogo was killed at Prison Farm in Kaduna when “terrorists” raided the farm. While, 41-year-old Fr. Christopher Odia met his dead after having been abducted on Sunday, June 26 morning as he left his Parish residence to go for Holy Mass. A statement dated June 25,2022 and issued by Fr. Christian Okewu Emmanuel, Chancellor, Archdiocese of Kaduna, related that the “sad event took place today, at Prison Farm, Kujama, along Kaduna-Kachia Road, after a raid on the farm by terrorists.” The statement read in part, “Until his death, Fr. Vitus (aged 50) was the Chaplain of the Catholic Community of the Kaduna State Polytechnic, and the Chairman of the Nigerian Catholic Diocesan Priests Association (NCDPA), Kaduna Chapter.”
“Most Rev. Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso, the Catholic Archbishop of Kaduna, condoles with the immediate family, the NFCS (Nigeria Federation of Catholic Students) Family of Kaduna Polytechnic, and indeed the entire Kaduna Polytechnic Community; and assures them of his fraternal closeness and prayers.” In same vein, Rev. Fr. Peter Egielewa, Director, Social Communications of Auchi Diocese announced, “with heavy hearts, but with total submission to the will of God”, the killing of Fr. Odia. According to his statement dated June 26, 2022, the Director, Social Communications of Auchi Diocese said that Fr. Odia was killed by his abductors after being kidnapped on June 26 at about 6.30am in his rectory while coming out to go for Sunday Mass at St. Michael Catholic Church Ikabigbo, Uzairue, Edo State.” The statement read in part, “Until his death, Fr. Odia was the Administrator of St. Michael Catholic Church, Ikabigbo and also the Principal of St. Philip Catholic Secondary School, Jattu. He was aged 41. May his soul rest in peace.” Nigeria is grappling with a wave of violence by armed gangs who frequently carry out killings and kidnappings for ransom – mostly in unprotected rural communities.
A fortnight ago, at the 70th anniversary flag off ceremony by Knights of the Order of St. Mulumba, Lagos Metropolitan Council at St. Leo Catholic Church, Ikeja, Lagos, Most Rev. Matthew Kukah, Bishop of the Diocese of Sokoto, lamented that one of his Priests and a religious sister who were kidnapped two weeks ago remain missing, and their abductors are negotiating a ransom for almost half a million dollars. “We are negotiating with the kidnappers as I’m talking because I don’t know how else to get back my priest,” he said. Kukah noted that members of his family have been kidnapped and another one of his Priests was killed by kidnappers, as was a seminarian. The latest murder of Fr. Odia follows series of other killings of clerics and Christians in Nigeria. Why do the alleged terrorists see Priests as soft targets? Most Rev. Julius Kundi, Catholic Bishop of Kafanchan Diocese, Kaduna State, one of the prelates in the eye of the storm had this to say. “I don’t know why, but what I know from my point of view as a man of God is that evil is unleashed on us.

Evil is upon us and only God knows when it will be taken away from us. Nobody is safe because evil is not a respecter of title or responsibilities. So, when evil is unleashed on a community, it carries everything along. Sometimes, pastors and priests in the North are targeted, especially in Kaduna State, to the extent that price tags were put on their heads. Kidnapping is not new to us, because we know that we are more like endangered species when it comes to operating as men of God in the North.” There have been claims and counter-claims over the nature of such attacks with some arguing that they are targeted at Christians. What’s Bishop Kundi’s opinion? He said, “Anybody killed in Southern Kaduna could be a Christian. We are the ones being killed; we are the ones without a means of protection and we know our killers and the government knows those who are killing us. So, why shouldn’t we complain? That is why I say that if a person says there is a religious, political, and ethnic connotation to the killings, the person may be right. It is not difficult for one to believe that.
Many of the communities in Kafanchan are made up of Christians; there are a few Muslim communities, so when these communities are heavily targeted, won’t you think there is an agenda that has to do with that? It may be wrong to say that this has anything to do with religion, but when you begin to see how things are happening, you may be tempted to connect it with religion.” Over 700 Catholic priests protested at the burial of Fr. Vitus Borogo. Speaking during the ceremony at the Queen of Apostle Catholic Church, Most Rev. Matthew Ndagoso, Archbishop of Kaduna Archdiocese, lamented the rising insecurity in the country. He stated that Nigeria has become a failed state under President Muhammadu Buhari owing to the country’s security condition.
According to him, Nigerians live in perpetual fear and have become hopeless due to the rising attacks and killings, while the Federal Government seems to be incapacitated to tackle the problem. The Bishop called on the government to establish state police to protect the vulnerable communities against bandits’ attacks since those saddled with the responsibility of protecting the lives and property of the citizens have failed to do so.