John Shiklam in Kaduna
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), appealed to politicians to focus on issue-based campaigns and avoid personal attacks and character assassination.
Chairman of the association, Rev. Yakubu Pam, made the appeal at a three -day special prayer summit yesterday in Kaduna, ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Pam said Nigerians are interested in hearing how those contesting for the presidency intend to address the economic and security challenges facing the country, not the insults they are hurling at each other.
He said the elections should not be seen as a do or die affair as power comes from God.
Pam also called on religious leaders to stand firm in the face of intimidation in this period of electioneering campaigns.
He said the prayer summit, with the theme, “managing diversity in an electioneering process, the role of the religious leaders”, was apt considering the state of the nation.
He said: “Politicians should strive to address the issues of the economy and proffer solutions and shun campaign of calumny and character assassination of opponents. More so, our presidential candidates should not see the general election as a do or die affair, after all power comes from God and what will be, will be, no man runs faster than his shadow.”
He said: “Religious leaders should be able to speak truth to power no matter the circumstances we find ourselves, because for every one we mislead, we must answer for it someday. Our people look up to us for leadership, especially at this time of our democratic experience, we must not fail them, we must provide the needed leadership and direction for them so that this house must not fall.”
According to him, Northern Christians are interested in good governance, equity, justice and fair play for the citizenry.
“The interest of the Northern Christians as far as the 2023 general election is concerned, is nothing but to promote the unity of the north in particular and Nigeria as a whole,” he said.
He called on governments at all levels to be proactive in addressing challenges and conflicts that might arise before, during and after the elections.
According to him, the government has a role to play in ensuring smooth electioneering campaigns and smooth transition without bloodbath.
“It is equally the responsibility of the government to ensure a level playing field for all the candidates of all the political parties and voters so that at the end of the day we will have a credible elections that would be accepted by Nigerians,” he said.
