Christians in the North-West zone have reacted to the non-inclusion of any Christian representative in the recently constituted board for the North-West Development Commission, NWDC.
While frowning at the development, Christians in the north urged the president to address the issue.
A statement issued by the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, North West Zone, Elder Sunday Oibe, called the presidency’s attention to the situation.
The statement said, “We wish to draw the attention of the presidency and the National Assembly to the fact that governance is fundamentally about inclusiveness in serving the people.”
The statement explained that in the North-West zone, Christians form a significant population across all seven states.
Regardless of the reasons behind the omission, Oibe stated that regardless of the reason for the omission, it was unacceptable that Christians were not represented in the commission.
He noted that they are saddened and alarmed by the outright exclusion of Christians in the zone, stressing that while former President Muhammadu Buhari was accused of nepotism and favouritism in his appointments, they now find themselves raising concerns about what appears to be religious bias under the current administration of President Bola Tinubu.
According to the statement, “Christians in the North-West are an essential bloc in the Nigerian project and their interests cannot be ignored.”
The association thereby called on President Tinubu to review the membership of the NWDC and ensure adequate representation for Christians in the North-West zone.
The association added that they have indigenous Christian communities in all the states in the north-west – Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Jigawa, and Zamfara, all of whom deserve a voice on this critical commission.
