Kukah: I Never Said There’s No Persecution of Christians in Nigeria

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Catholic Bishop of the Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, yesterday pushed back on reports alleging that he said there was no persecution of Christians in Nigeria, stressing that the imputation was untrue.

In a statement tagged: “Of the Persecution of Christians in Nigeria : My Response,” Kukah said he was baffled that despite the clarity of his position, there appeared to be determined efforts to ascribe to him a position as saying that there is no persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

However, newspaper reports had quoted the cleric as challenging the narrative of Christian persecution in the country. “If you are a Christian in Nigeria and you say you are persecuted, my question is: how?

“ At least 80 per cent of educated Nigerians are Christians, and up to 85 per cent of the Nigerian economy is controlled by Christians. With such figures, how can anyone say Christians are being persecuted?”, he was quoted to have said.

But Kukah posited that he was only calling for the unity of Christians in the country, stressing that given the resources at their disposal, the greatest challenge for Christians was unity and solidarity.

“For over a week, I have been in the news on the basis of multiple claims  that I had said that there was no persecution of Christians in Nigeria. The outpouring of emotions is understandable especially against the backdrop of the inviolability of life, the extermination of which must not be undermined by any debates on numbers or intent.

“I am grateful to my colleagues at The Kukah Centre, who issued a Statement while I was caught up with a tight schedule. I nevertheless believe that is no substitute for my personal responsibility.

“First, let me say how sincerely sorry I am to be associated with representations that understandably are a source of great pain and mental anguish to so many of my brothers and sisters within the body of Christ. The outpouring of emotions  suggests to me the investment of trust in me, an onus I do not take lightly.

“I am baffled that despite the clarity of my position, there appear to be determined efforts to ascribe to me a position as saying that there is no persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Nothing could be further from the truth.

“So, for the record, I did not say that Christians are not persecuted in Nigeria! Addressing an audience of the Catholic Knights of St. Mulumba in Kaduna on November 28th, I had spoken about the challenges of bearing witness to Christ in a time of persecution. I drew lessons from history and the stories of brave men and women in Nigeria and Africa as models of witnessing in times such as these.

“  I concluded that the greatest challenge for Christians was unity and solidarity. Given the huge human and material resources that we have as Christians in Nigeria, if only we stood together, I argued, we would have no reason to be victims of persecution. Nothing here implied a denial of the fate of Christians,” the renowned cleric stated.

Over the years, he stressed that he had spoken extensively on the theme of persecution of Christians and had argued then as now that by whatever name it is described,  the bloodshed needed to end as soon as yesterday because common humanity is at stake.

The government and its security agencies, he said,  have an urgent responsibility to bring the perpetrators to account, pointing out that it is their neglect of this duty or their failure to accomplish it that has detained everyone in an appearance of disagreement without difference.

“As a people, I believe we owe ourselves the collective duty to regain our humanity not as perpetual victims but as equal citizens of our land. Too many innocent souls have been lost, too much blood shed and our children and citizens are in captivity. Amidst the nadir of this pain, it is important that we focus on reclaiming the soul of our nation.

“I am deeply sorry for the unnecessary distraction. These moments are too serious for us to equivocate. This is not the time for us to retreat or be distracted. This is a contest that we must win. The journey may be painful. We may falter along the way but we will only reach our destination by learning our lessons, standing up even when we stumble, and always keeping our eyes on the ultimate prize, peace for our country, justice for those injured, and reconciliation for our people.

 “This is a struggle that I have committed most of my pastoral and intellectual life to. It is a struggle in which I pray that, by clinging to the old rugged cross, we can one day exchange it for a crown. So, let us all get back on the road especially as the spirit of Bethlehem beckons” he admonished.