Archbishop Protests Slaughter of Christians: Nigeria Is ‘Drifting Toward Anarchy’

Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Alfred Adewale Martins looks on as policemen install a barrie
PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP via Getty

The ongoing killings of Christians in Nigeria indicate that the country is “drifting towards anarchy,” said Lagos Archbishop Alfred Adewale Martins following the murder of an 18-year-old seminarian last week.

In a statement on the diocesan website, the archbishop (pictured) lamented the death of the young seminarian, Michael Nnadi, who had been abducted along with three others in Kaduna State. The other three young seminarians were released but Mnadi was executed by his captors.

“This was a young man who abandoned all with the desire to serve His creator and humanity, now murdered for no just cause,” the archbishop said, while noting that this latest murder was just one of several cases of innocent Nigerians being shot dead on daily basis “while our security services and their chiefs watch as if they were helpless.”

Martins noted the rise in insurgency and the inability of the federal government to arrest the situation, describing it as a symbol of failure in the current security arrangement of the state.

The archbishop also warned that the constant killings of Nigerians should not go unchecked and a mass arrest of the perpetrators should be carried out in the nearest future.

“This appalling situation must come to an end,” his statement said. “We cannot just fold our arms and allow these monstrous activities to continue to thrive. The consequences of the dastardly acts on the psyche of Nigerians can only be imagined. The Federal Government must act now before things get out of hand.”

The only way the government can reassure the people that they are committed to their welfare is to “enforce mass arrest of the perpetrators and bring an end to the menace of kidnapping across the land,” he said.

Warning that the situation could make people start taking laws into their hands, the archbishop urged the president to look into the nation’s security structure and fix it.

“For a while now, many Nigerians from different walks of life have been calling for a revamping of the security arrangements in the nation even if it means the replacement of the Heads of the various Security Agencies in order to give room for new ideas,” Martin said. “It is beyond doubt that the gains of the past few years are being lost because those at the helm of affairs and the soldiers in the thick of the war are tired and need to be replaced.”

Meanwhile, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) organized prayer services and protests across the country Sunday to draw the Federal Government’s attention to the escalating killings, abductions, and insecurity across the nation.

The group protested the recent brutal killing of Lawan Andimi, the CAN Chairman in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State, by Boko Haram terrorists, as well as a number of other killings in the nation.

“The prayer walk was aimed at offering prayers and supplications unto God to save Nigeria from being consumed by insurgents, terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, armed robbers, militants and ritualists in all our states,” said CAN representative Pastor Adeboye.

“Furthermore, we declared that Jesus who is the Prince of Peace is our Lord and King,” the pastor said. “We carried and displayed several placards saying ‘No’ to further killings and demanding that the Federal and State governments should rise up to their civic responsibility of securing the lives and properties of her citizens.”

In his speech, Adeboye also proposed that “the security infrastructure in our nation be overhauled and improved drastically,” in the hope that current security challenges “will be a thing of the past.”

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