Education
By Anthony Isibor
THE Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, has announced plans to establish the Anglican University of Technology as a form of re-orientation in the educational system that will be relevant in the contemporary world.
This was made know through a communiqué issued by the church standing committee after a four-day meeting held at the Archbishop Adebola and Oluranti Ademowo resource centre, Faith Plaza, Bariga, Lagos from Monday, 20th through Friday, September 24, 2021, with the theme “Abiding in Christ: God’s Panacea in an Unstable World”.
The meeting of the highest policy-making body of the church, made up of the House of Bishops, Clergy, Laity and Bishop wives, was attended by 163 Bishops, 151 Clergy and 97 lay delegates, and was presided over by the Most Reverend Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba, Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria, took several far-reaching decisions on the Church and State of the Nation.
The committee, while expressing its sympathy with the communities affected by violence and issues of insecurity in various dimensions, spreading all over the country, also condemned the fragile state of national insecurity due to religious extremism, terrorism, violence, attacks and killings all over the country; and urging it to urgently rise to address the situation, laments the gruesome killing of one of its clergy in the Diocese of Orlu, the Rev Emeka Merenu, and called on the government at various levels to take actions that would restore confidence in its ability to protect lives and stem the tide of despair and hopelessness, urging them to ensure that the killers are identified and brought to book.
“The unabated kidnapping of school children in the country portends grave danger not only to the education of our children, but also to the nation’s development.
“The Standing Committee, therefore, urges the government to make Nigeria attractive to foreign investors. It proposes a re-orientation in our educational system that will be relevant in the contemporary world. In this direction, the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) has decided to establish the Anglican University of Technology.
“The Standing Committee bemoans the unfortunate situation which the case of ‘Corona Virus December 2019, COVID-19, pandemic brought to the world. The Church appreciates the government’s efforts to vaccinate the people against this pandemic and wants the efforts to be taken to all parts of Nigeria. The Standing Committee therefore calls on everyone to take precautionary measures and observe all protocols of COVID-19 and its variants,” he said.
The Church, while noting that the regularity of industrial actions in Nigeria is alarming, adversely affecting the economic development of Nigeria, recommends that “All stakeholders involved in industrial relations should adopt Conciliation/Mediation and other Alternative Disputes Resolution, ADR, mechanisms”.
It also urged the government to endeavor to keep the agreements reached at the roundtable conference between them and various organisations.
Although the Committee commended the federal government on diversification of the nation’s transport system by the introduction of rail transport and the ongoing construction of the second Niger Bridge, It calls on the government to expedite actions to complete the projects.
It also expressed its concern at the rate at which government is borrowing, thereby increasing the national debts portfolio.
“The Standing Committee urges government to exercise restraints in further borrowing so as not to jeopardise the future of all Nigerians.
The meeting which observed that many are clamouring for self-determination because of varying forms of injustice in governance in the country, also encourages all Christians to be involved in the electoral processes.
“The Church admonishes the National Assembly to revisit the issues of Direct-recording electronic, DRE, voting system. As the gubernatorial election approaches in Anambra State, the Standing Committee, enjoins all stakeholders to embrace equity, justice, fairness, and good conscience in all political permutations and engagements.
It also therefore “urges the government to initiate dialogues and inclusive governance to address the reasons for the agitations and stop gagging people with opposing views.
The Standing Committee also calls on the government to urgently redress the lapses in the country’s health system. It urges the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, to as a matter of urgency, establish functional centers in the six geopolitical zones.
On the issues of drug abuse and addiction, which it observes with grave concern as one of the monsters confronting our nation Nigeria is. ”The Standing Committee commends the federal government for efforts of ‘National Drug Law and Enforcement Agency’, NDLEA, in curbing drug trafficking. The church has gone further in supporting the efforts of the government by declaring a war against drug abuse and addiction through her initiative called ‘Anglican Compassion and Development Initiative, ACADI.
Others in attendance were four Bishops from the Province of the Anglican Chruch in North America, ACNA, led by its Primate and Chairman of the Global Anglican Future Conference, GAFCON, the Most Reverend Foley Beach, including Babajide Olusola Sanwo-olu, the governor of Lagos State, Nyesom Ezebunwor Wike, the governor of Rivers State, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, the Executive Governor of Ondo State, represented by his deputy, Lucky Orimisan Ayedatiwa, Dapo Abiodun, the Executive Governor of Ogun State, represented by the Most Reverend Michael Fape, Archbishop of Lagos Province and Bishop of Remo, and Prof. Emmanuel Akinola Abayomi, the Commissioner for Health, Lagos State
The communiqué was signed by Venerable Gershinen Paul Dajur, General Secretary, Church of Nigeria, The Most Reverend Ali Buba Lamido, Dean, Church of Nigeria, and The Most Reverend Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba, Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria.
– Sept. 24, 2021 @ 13:30 GMT |
A.I
Tags: Anglican Communion Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu Dapo Abiodun Lucky Orimisan Ayedatiwa Most Reverend Michael Fape Nyesom Ezebunwor Wike Prof. Emmanuel Akinola Abayomi Venerable Gershinen Paul Dajur
