Vote competent, transparent leaders, Catholic bishops tell Nigerians

The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has called on Nigerians to choose leaders capable of governing the nation for the common good.

The bishops said the 2023 general elections provided another opportunity “to reject evil, greater or lesser, and wisely choose good and capable candidates at all levels.”

They made the call in a communique titled: “Citizens Participation in Good Governance in Nigeria”, issued at the end of their first plenary meeting held at the CSN Resource Centre, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Durumi, Abuja.

The communiqué, signed by the President of CBCN, Most Rev Lucius Ugorji, Archbishop of Owerri; and Secretary, Most Rev Donatus Ogun, was released to newsmen yesterday in Ado-Ekiti by the Catholic Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Most Rev Felix Ajakaye.

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The clergymen said, “Our votes are precious; we must use them well, encouraging all eligible citizens to come out en masse to vote for God-fearing, honest, vibrant and transparent leaders for a better Nigeria.

“We urge the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its officials to ensure that their conduct in the entire electoral process is transparent, honest and beyond reproach.

“We continue to enjoin the commission to make sure that the newly adopted technologies for accreditation, transmission and collation are transparently and sincerely deployed and not manipulated to give false results.”

On the economic hardship bedeviling the country, the bishops urged the federal government and its relevant agencies to immediately increase the circulation of the new naira notes and make and implement adequate monetary and other relevant policies that would reduce the suffering and hardship experienced by the people.

They noted that, “The flawed implementation of the cash swap policy which resulted in a cash crunch has added to the ordeal, hunger, anger and frustration of the people.”