Election not priority for Nigeria —Femi Emmanuel

The presiding pastor of the Livingspring Chapel International, Pastor Femi Emmanuel, has said that elections; controversies over a Muslim/Muslim ticket and the likes are not priorities for Nigeria now as a country, but how to re-organise it.

He noted that what the country needs right now is a good and God-sent leader, who understands the government, politics and traditions and could rescue the people from slavery.

Emmanuel, who also is the director, Directorate of Politics and Governance of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, spoke in Ibadan at the 2022 Femi Emmanuel Lecture Series held at the Dominion City Event Centre, Aduloju Bus Stop, Ibadan.

The theme of the lecture was ‘Democracy and Good Governance in Nigeria: The Role of Christians in Politics.’

While charging Christians for active participation in politics, he said that the “unbalanced teachings and doctrines over the years that have totally removed the church community from political space is what we are suffering now.”

He emphasised that Christians had failed to understand their responsibility and the fact that they have a role to play in bringing to fruition their dream nation, saying “you can never change a system you are not involved in, but that was the impression we all grew with.”

“We have prayed long enough and God has answered our prayers a long time ago, but our failure to understand the key role we need to play in politics has brought us to this level,” he added.

He said the PFN had given him the mandate to coordinate Christians inclusion in the political space, adding that “by the grace of God the church will wake up.”

Speaking on the theme of the lecture, ‘Democracy and Good Governance in Nigeria: The Role of Christians in Politics,’ the lead pastor of Trinity House Church, Lagos, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, noted that a good governance is a constructive cooperation between the different sectors, where the result is the efficient use of resources, responsible use of power and effective and sustainable service provision.

He said that a good governance emerges when the stakeholders engage and participate with each other in an inclusive, transparent and accountable manner to accomplish a better service that is free of corruption and abuse and within the rule of law.

Ighodalo, who bemoaned the state of the nation, said “democracy and good governance naturally should go hand-in-hand; unfortunately, this is not what we have experienced in Nigeria, especially since 1960 when we became a government of our own.

“We have not been able to achieve effectively the kind of good governance that we would have loved and appreciated.”

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He said: “Nigeria was designed to fail, but Nigeria will not fail. What is happening to Nigeria is not a mistake. It was preconceived, premeditated, pre organised and prearranged by British colonialists so that it does not survive, but Nigeria will be great again.”

He, however, enjoined Nigerians to rise up to decide the kind of country and leader they want.

He said the leader must be spiritual, fearful of God, disciplined, visionary, strong, capable, healthy, determined, energetic, focused, honest and sincere.

While Ighodalo lauded the effort of the convener, Pastor Femi Emmanuel, for his courage and determination at championing the course of Christian’s active participation in politics, he also charged Christians in the body of Christ to come on board to bring about the change.

In his contribution at a panel discussion at the event, the director of the Directorate of Politics and Governance, PFN, Oyo State, Dr Joshua Obasa called on fathers of faith in the country to bury their differences and come together to chart a new course for the nation.

At the event, political aspirants across parties and those who are interested in politics were prayed for.