2025: Create better strategies for empowering Nigerians, Martins urges govt, private sector

…Says Nigeria should move from providing palliatives

The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, Alfred Adewale Martins has urged the government and the organised private sector to move from providing palliatives to better strategies for empowering Nigerians in the New Year.

The prelate in a release signed by Anthony Godonu, the director of social communications of the archdiocese, called for a more dignifying move towards a qualitative, rather than palliative, empowerment of Nigerians.

He urged the government and the private sector to create opportunities for skills acquisitions, provision of gainful employment, and soft loan opportunities for small and medium scale industries to thrive.

According to him, this has become necessary because of the potential long-lasting positive impact on the nation’s weak economy. “Be that as it may, we cannot but demand that governments at all levels should do far better in 2025 than they have done so far in order to stem the high rate of poverty in the country and improve the quality of lives of the citizens,” Martins stated.

He also urged all Nigerians to be thankful to God in spite of all the challenges, knowing very well that many are not as blessed, especially having survived the vicissitudes of life in 2024.

He stated further that it is not to play down on the fact that the living standards of many have become worse than ever before, while begging to survive has become commonplace across the streets, towns and cities in Nigeria.

“However, it is to say that we cannot afford to close the door on hope and trust in God as the basis for taking the required action to remedy the sad situations of many people,” he stated.

While expressing dismay that a lot of Nigerians are finding it difficult to cope with meeting their basic needs, he noted that the task of improving the quality of lives of Nigerians through deliberate empowerment policies should also be the concern of the organized private sector.

According to him, a better enabling environment for businesses to thrive must be continually explored by the government so that Nigerians would be better served. He stated further that the increased cost of energy and other social amenities have made it difficult for businesses to thrive.

“While we recognize the fact that things must be better priced, it is also important that more opportune times need to be identified so that the burden is not too heavy as to make life impossible for people,” Martins stated.

Martins, while also thanking God for keeping Nigeria as one despite the numerous challenges she has gone through, said the New Year provides another opportunity for all Nigerians, the leaders and the led, to reflect on the journey so far and project on how to make the New Year more purpose-driven for the citizens.

“As we enter into the new year 2025, we must take time, as individuals and as a people, to reflect sincerely and honestly on our successes and failures in the past year so that we can work out ways of making 2025 a more fruitful year for all and sundry. Judging from the recent tragic events that marred the good intentions of some individuals and groups to provide palliatives for vulnerable Nigerians, we need to rethink our strategies for helping the poor and the most vulnerable among us.

“I believe it is time that government at all levels, the private sector operators, Non-Governmental Organizations, and other relevant agencies should begin to explore more ingenious ways of empowering the less privileged Nigerians through skill-upgrades and greater opportunities to be gainfully employed so that they provide for their families with dignity and not resort to begging for daily sustenance.

“I believe if this is effectively carried out, the high rate of poverty and unemployment in society will be reduced to a large extent and people will have a great sense of purpose in life. By so doing, we will not merely be giving fish to the hungry, but we will help to teach them how to build fish ponds that will sustain them and their families without resorting to begging.”