IPOB agitations can be resolved with dialogue —Revd Oni

Reverend Simeon Ola Oni, a legal practitioner and the Presiding Pastor of King’s Touch Ministries, Ibadan, Oyo State, shares with TribuneChurch his thoughts on topical national and religious issues. Excerpts:

RECENTLY, the court proscribed the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB). As a lawyer and a cleric, how would you react to the proscription?

I believe that there are ways IPOB should carry out its agitations. Every group in any society or system has the right to agitate for their demands or ask for anything from the authorities. As such, IPOB has a right to ask for anything from the Nigerian government, but there are ways this can be done. However, the way they are carrying out their activities now is completely wrong; their military approach or forceful nature is wrong. If the easterners speak with one voice, they will be heard, because it is a segment of this country. When you remove the South-East from Nigeria, Nigeria cannot be whole again. If they speak with one voice, then government will have a roundtable discussion with them and they can achieve their goals. Painting the country black as they are doing now is not the right way to go and it will not work. No government will allow any segment to secede in that manner. I support the proscription of IPOB. With the way they’re carrying out their activities, it would seem they want another civil war. And if you ask those who experienced the first civil war, they will tell you they are not prepared for another because some of them are still nursing the pains from that war. It should be resolved at a roundtable. The problem with the easterners is that they are not speaking with one voice. The proscription is necessary.

Another issue generating reactions is the Sukuk loan, which the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said is an attempt to Islamise the country. Do you subscribe to this notion?

Nigeria is a secular state, and, as such, all religions are allowed. Many people are saying borrowing from an Islamic organisation is an attempt to islamise the country. It depends on the motive of government. There is nothing bad in borrowing from an organisation that is ready to grant that loan. If the motive is to islamise Nigeria, that move is completely wrong because government cannot please one religion over another; that would be unconstitutional.

As the leader of a church, how would you advise youths on the issue of living righteously?

Government has a responsibility to provide employment opportunities for youths. It is not good enough that parents invest in educating their children and they end up jobless; their investment must yield result, and that is ensuring that the children are gainfully employed. There are also societal expectations from graduates and youths to make money, and that is why some of the youths are involved in illegal activities, all in the effort to make money at all costs. When government fails in its responsibility, that’s what happens. The church must also ensure it teaches the right message. Not just the churches, but other religious institutions as well. Parents too should reduce their pressure on youths to make money.

Nigeria has many religious establishments, yet it would seem there is no peace. Why is the country witnessing this?

What do we teach at religious establishments? Churches and mosques are doing their best. However, let government also contribute its quota to ensuring lasting peace. The society would be better if clerics do what is expected of them. Government must also do what is expected of them. There would be criminal elements, in spite of these things being put in place, but it would be reduced to the barest minimum.

You started a programme last year, which focused on training ministers of God. What efforts are you making to sustain that programme?

We have been having classes to train the trainers. We started with our ordained ministers in the church and are teaching them how to live exemplary lives, how to be godly and let their lives be blessings to others. We are training our ministers first then we will launch out to other clerics.

The church also organises a programme every last quarter of the year. Will this year be any different?

We just had one in September – it was a programme for women and we had many testimonies. We will have the third annual convention in mid-November, which will be a four-day programme with the theme, My Case is Different and will feature ministers of God. It will hold at the new auditorium.