Obaseki calls for deeper synergy with christian body to combat menace of cultism, others

Edo State Governor,  Godwin Obaseki, has called for deeper collaboration with the church to wipe out the menace of cultism and ruthless killings in the state.

Obaseki made the call during the launch of the Third Session of the Twentieth Synod of the Diocese of Benin Anglican Communion, which held on Friday June 21, 2024, in Benin City.

The Governor who also lamented the high level of dependence on importation in the country, stated that part of its debilitating effects on the nation’s economy is high-level hunger and hike in the country’s exchange rates when compared to other nations.

According to the Governor, “I want to thank our brother, our Bishop, for providing leadership to this diocese. As you know, the Synod is important to us in the Anglican Communion, because it is that event that brings the laity and clergy together under the President or Bishop.

“I just want to join our father in the Lord to say, yes, we should pray, yes, we should worship God, and we should also thank Him because he has given us everything to make this world a better place. I have seen it in the last eight years in Edo.

“When I took over office in 2016, it was a nightmare. This place was dark and dingy. Our children did not want to stay here anymore.

“Every evening, you see them heading towards Ikpoba Hill to enter buses going to Kano, trying to travel through the Sahara to Europe, because they did not see any hope here. Today, we thank God; when you are counting states where people are traveling away from, Edo is no longer one of the top ten”.

Obaseki who highlighted some gains of his administration in the last 7 years, commended the Christian body for their support and collaboration, which has assisted the state in surmounting numerous challenges, while urging deeper synergy to combat the menace of cultism, ruthless killings and other social vices in the state.

Obaseki said: “I want to thank you for acknowledging what we have done with security in our state, because the primary purpose of government is to protect the lives and property of citizens. If the government cannot provide security, it has no business being there. But we still have a long way to go.

“Our big problem in Edo is no longer kidnapping as such; our big problem in Edo from the security reports, is homicide. And these killings are merely as a result of the activities of cultists and community youths.

“Imagine a young girl just graduated and goes to school to collect her certificate, and people attacked her, raped her and killed her in Benin. This happened a few days ago. The church must join and help us; we have to wipe out cultism; we do not need such dubious and heinous groups.”

The Governor appreciated the role of the Christian body in the past 7 years of his administration, acknowledging the relevance of the church in the socio-economic landscape of the state, a reason behind his administration’s determination to work with the church in the area of social welfare.

“Any government that needs to know what is going on with its citizens can reach those citizens if they partner with institutions like the church. That is really why part of our strategy has been to always work with the church.

“I woke up one day, I got a few calls at night, and I could not sleep, because I knew of a family, somebody called, and the children were crying at the background, they had not eaten all day. And I knew there were more people like this? I woke up, went to a religious leader, and I explained. I said, ‘this is between me, you, and God’.

“Let me provide a certain amount every month from the state, the sum of one billion naira. Let us gather members of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Edo State Chapter, organize yourselves, buy food items, and re-bag them. Send these food items to your churches, to these people, so that at least they can eat.

“I found out that the Bishop was there in the first meeting. He provided leadership and direction. And I cannot tell you how impressed I was when I saw what CAN and the church did; the transparency with which they handled this matter. All I did was credit the accounts. And they bought what they wanted to buy and spread it across all the local governments in Edo State”, the Governor said.

Obaseki further decried the underutilization and negligence of the country’s rich agricultural heritage, stating that overdependence on foreign-based products, contributes significantly to the overall economic hardship facing the country.

He said: “I also want to thank you, for your mention on what we have done in the area of agriculture. We have no business being hungry in Edo because our land is very fertile.

“But we must return to agriculture; we must return to food production. We are doing everything in our power to encourage people to go back to the farm.

“But the problem is that we have lost the culture of agriculture. Our young people do not want to farm, they do not want to produce. So, we have to re-train them; let them see that there is money to be made in agriculture, so that we can go to the farms and feed ourselves.

“The biggest problem we have in Nigeria today is that we import almost everything we need. Nigeria alone, spends over $500 million to import milk and milk-based products like baby formula every year.

“Who does that in the world? Why would we not be poor, why would the exchange rate not go high? By the grace of God, we are training our people, we are providing facilities, we are proving manpower, we are proving markets”.

In his address, the Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Benin Anglican Communion, Rt. Rev. Peter Imasuen, urged Christians to continue in the faith in spite of daunting challenges, as everything is possible with God.

He further commended the developmental strides of Governor Godwin Obaseki in the different sectors of the state, noting that Edo State has witnessed unprecedented growth and advancement through the Governor’s visionary leadership.