By AMOS MATHEW, Kaduna –
The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has said that they are not unaware that the 2025 Easter Season is being celebrated amid continuing daunting existential socioeconomic, political and, most worryingly, security and criminality challenges.
The National Publicity Secretary of the ACF, Prof. Tukur Muhammad-Baba, who disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, felicitated with Nigerian and worldwide Christian brethren on the celebration of the 2025 Easter Season.
According to the statement, “Communities in Benue, Borno, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Katsina, Kaduna, Niger, Plateau, Zamfara, and other states, are daily visited with debilitating and senseless deaths, destruction, dislocation, tears, and fractured intergroup relations. Adding to the tragedy are monstrous corruption, selfishness of leaders, nepotism political insensitivity, inequities, impunity, lack of frugality, provocative and ostentatious lifestyles of political and other office holders, etc.
“Doubtless, living conditions are dire, particularly in the northern states and in Nigeria in general. The needed public policy responses to the problems have been grossly inadequate and far from being effective and satisfactory. Still, in the spirit of occasion, ACF calls on the Christian brethren to continue to pray for peace, security and economic recovery for Nigeria, for God’s intercession so that Nigeria’s leaders are re-endowed with faith, love for ordinary citizens and the wisdom to chart Nigeria to the path to righteousness and glory.
“ACF also prays to Almighty God to further re-energize the National Security agencies so that they crush the reigns of terror, criminality, and insecurity that non-state actors have been subjecting the people to and which seek to destabilise Arewa communities and the Nigeria at large; turn the hearts of the terror merchants and their sponsors away from their senseless and callous criminality.
“ACF also prays for the conditions which allow and embolden the evil terror merchants to be overcome. Believing that a more peaceful, prosperous, and socially harmonious Arewa, and Nigeria, is still possible and plausible, ACF remains hopeful that our communities will emerge more resilient, stronger, hospitable, even more accommodative for all, as opposed to the current culture of pervasive anger, mutual mistrust, intolerance, despair and hopelessness”.
