• Nigeria to host global peace festival Nov
THE Sultan of Sokoto and the President, Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, His Eminence, Muhammadu Sa'ad Abubakar III, has said that Nigeria must remain one indivisible nation despite the differences in religion, tribe, geographical locations and urged Nigerians to imbibe the spirit of peace, tolerance, unity and brotherhood.
According to him, "It is the wisdom of God to make us one people under one nation irrespective of our diversity."
Also, the President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, has said that to build a new and great Nigeria, we must do everything it takes to ensure lasting peace.
Speaking at the consultative meeting on the "Role of Religious Leaders and Traditional Rulers in Building a Culture of Peace, National Unity and Integration in Abuja, the Sultan stressed the need for political office holders, religious leaders and traditional rulers in the country to discharge their responsibilities with justice, fairness and equity.
He said: "Wherever you find absence of equity, justice, you find disaffection; wherever you find disaffection, you find friction; wherever you find friction, you are breaching peace; and before you know it, you are getting reactions like some of the crises we have in the world today. The massage of peace, unity, take centre stage of the sermons in the various mosques and churches across the country".
He observed that the crisis, disaffection and self-destruction in the world today are not the intention of God, but the product of man's inhumanity to man.
The Sultan said: "If since the creation of man, the differences in faith, value disposition and consequences of our desperation has not yielded any result order than self-destruction, shouldn't we turn to the basis of recognising that God created everybody equal. Before God, whether you are White or Black, we are all the same; the differences is what you make of yourself and what makes you different or acceptable before God is the measure of your goodness that has benefited your neighbour whether he is of your religion, colour, tribe or not".
Earlier, the facilitator of the programme, Bishop Sunday Onuoha, stressed the need to strengthen the ties and relations between people of all faith in Nigeria.
He noted that the meeting would fast-track the process of having a global peace festival in Nigeria in November 2013.
In his address, Oritsejafor observed that peace is necessary and possible, adding that to achieve peace, have peace, there must be love, integrity, equity, truth and justice.
The CAN president, who noted that Nigeria has potential for greatness and can stand tall in the comity of nations, said: "We are not where we ought to be, but we are not also where we used to be".
Also speaking, at Global Peace Foundation, James Flynn, noted that many studies have identified Nigeria as the most religious nation in the world, adding that this is the greatest resource for any nation.
He noted that the world is faced with one common challenge of insecurity, adding that all nations of the world need to put in place as a building block for peace.
Flynn called on leaders at all level in Nigeria to create an inclusive process towards consensus of shared values and work towards a unique identity for the country as the nation marks its 100 years of amalgamation.
He observed that religious and traditional leaders can serve as the conscience of the nation by working together to uplift and build consensus between.
According to him, Nigeria can use its religious leaders and traditional rulers to solve its problem to be a model and solution to the world.
The Guardian
No one needs to tell us again that peace is all we need in this country, we know that ourselves. This killings will take us nowhere.