Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Catholic Bishops of Owerri Ecclesiastical Province have urged enforcers of sit-at-home in the South-East to jettison the strategy in view of its crippling effects on the economy of the people.
The Bishops who met in Umuahia, Abia State, expressed deep worry over the devastating effects of the incessant sit-at-home on the businesses and social lives of the people.
In a communiqué issued after the meeting, the Bishops said that if the sit-at-home were not halted, the economy of the South-East would soon be crippled completely.
“We can no longer close our eyes to the indiscriminate sit-at-home orders in the South-East that have so far disrupted lives, paralysing economic, educational and commercial activities. In the past we had called on our people to sheathe their swords and come together to agree on the way forward for our region.
“We want to repeat this appeal again with more urgency. The resort to violence can never be condoned, nor can it be expected to bring any lasting solution to the needs of our people. The South-East is extolled as the commercial hub of the nation.
“Unfortunately, traders in the region today are compelled to stay at home on Mondays, usually the busiest day of the week and the most productive for some. Events like traditional weddings, new yam festivals, funerals, Christmas and Easter celebrations, when our brothers and sisters from the Diaspora usually return home to be with their loved one, are now being boycotted, with people prioritising their security.
“The damage to our local economies, and to the culture and mental health of our people, can never be fully quantified.”
In the communique signed by the Archbishop of Owerri Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev. Lucius Ugorji; and the Secretary of the Province and Bishop of Aba Diocese, Most Rev. Augustine Echema, the Bishops, called on the judiciary to help save the Nigerian democracy from total collapse.
They accused the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of conniving with corrupt politicians to compromise the 2023 polls.
“The hope, at the moment is that the judiciary will rise up to the challenge and rescue our ailing democratic experiment,” the communique read in part.
“Many people had trusted the repeated assurances by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deliver a credible electoral process, namely, to come up with an impartial standard for screening candidates, to organise the logistics for conducting free and fair elections, to transmit voting results electronically from polling stations in real time, to eliminate cases of ballot stuffing and vote stealing, etc.
“Sadly, the electoral process was riddled by irregularities. INEC and some of the political actors dashed the hopes of our people.
“Consequently, the results of the last elections can hardly be considered as reflecting the overall will of the people, and are still being contested. And this continues to darken the cloud of uncertainty and tension that has enveloped the nation.”
The Bishops also called on Government to roll out palliatives for the masses to cushion the effects of the fuel subsidy removal.
“The ugly sight of our people toiling under excruciating economic conditions is not only frightening but heartbreaking.
“Though the Federal Government has announced a series of “palliative” measures to mitigate the impact of these policies, many Nigerians are still not feeling any relief from their worsening situation.”
