As politicians and political parties get set for the campaign seasons ahead of next year’s general election, the leadership of Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria has advocated for issue-based engagements, where all sides and interests are allowed to contribute their quota to the advancement and progress of the nation.
“It is our candid opinion that at the end of the lecture next week, we would have succeeded in contributing valuable ideas and insight to the chosen national discourse as well as encourage and motivate Nigerians to show more interest and engagement in the affairs of the nation,” Sam Aboyeji, the General Overseer of the Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria, stated during the press conference held at the national office, Yaba, Lagos on Thursday 15 September, ahead of the 9th annual public lecture and 67th national convention of the church.
According to him, this year’s lecture is very strategic as it comes on the eve of the commencement of political activities leading up to the 2023 general elections scheduled for early next year.
The clergyman therefore called on Nigerians to partner with the government as stakeholders in nation building, stating that the church’s public lecture, the 9th in the series this year, continues to form part of the church contribution to the discourse on nation building. “It is from the height of the foregoing that on Friday September 23, we shall be hosting the 9th annual public lecture at the national headquarters church.
“As a church, one of the tenets of faith which we hold strongly is civil government. We believe and preach that as responsible citizens of this great nation Nigeria, we have a duty and an obligation as stakeholders and partners with the government in the building of our dear nation,” Aboyeji stated.
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Akin Oyebode, professor of International Law and chair of International Law and Jurisprudence at the University of Lagos, would be the guest lecturer, while Bolaji Akinyemi, a professor of Political Science and former director general of Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) is the chairman.
Oyebode and Akinyemi, together with other speakers shall discuss the topic, ‘A nation at war against itself: The way forward’. And, according to Aboyeji, Nigeria is a nation of diverse culture and ethnic nationalities that have co-existed side by side for over a century, hence the need to revisit the country’s co-existence as a people.
“We have recorded remarkable and enviable achievements in the past which earned us the status of ‘Giant of Africa’. Our people and diversity used to be our greatest strength as national interest superseded all other interests. However, the narrative seems to have changed, with the projection of individual, group, and ethnic interests over that of the nation by self-seeking individuals,” Aboyeji stated.
He stated further that the trend if left unattended by citizens and all stakeholders threatens to rip through the fabrics of the nation, giving rise to lack of patriotism, nepotism, corruption and promotion of sectional interest above the overall interest of the nation.
“As a church we shall continue to pray for the leadership and citizens of this country for the restoration of years of devastation of its God given resources while proffering the required counsel and advice where necessary to those in leadership. Nigeria will certainly attain the New Heights God has proposed for it where its current challenges will be overcome. We therefore look forward to an insightful and engaging lecture from our guest lecturer and the rich perspective of the chairman of the event,” Aboyeji concluded.
