Nigeria: Kaduna Religious Bill, Obnoxious, ill Motivated – Says ECWA … Tells El-Rufa’i To Seek Better Alternative

The Evangelical Church Winning All, (ECWA) has said that the aborted Religious Preaching Regulatory Bill recently passed by the Kaduna State House of Assembly, is ill – motivated, obnoxious and should be discarded.

The Executive Bill was proposed by the El-Rufai Administration in 2016.

In a statement made available to AFRICA PRIME NEWS, ECWA President, Rev Stephen Baba observed that the speed with which the Bill was passed at the twilight of the 8th Assembly raises suspicion about its true intention.

This, he argues, is more so when the Bill was passed against a subsisting court order issued in 2017 restraining the Kaduna State House of Assembly from taking any further action pending the determination of the substantive issue.

Rev Baba said it was noteworthy that the Bill had been opposed by Muslim and Christian bodies as well as individuals since its introduction to the State House of Assembly in 2016.

“The essence of every good law is to promote peace, unity, order, well-being and development of the people among others. Unfortunately, ECWA strongly believes that the said law is ill-motivated, obnoxious and unnecessary because of its negative implications for the effective practice of the Christian faith and preaching of the gospel of salvation. In Mathew 28:19-20, our Lord Jesus Christ commissioned every Christian to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; and teaching them to obey everything He has commanded.

“The idea of censorship of religious publications and issuing license to preachers is a negation of this great commission and violation of the fundamental right of Christians to practice their religion as guaranteed in the Nigerian Constitution.

“In the 1999 Constitution as amended, Section 38 subsections (1) and (3) guarantee the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion while Section 39 subsection (1) guarantees the right to freedom of expression and press.

“Evangelism, prayer and fasting are important injunctions in the Christian faith. It is a well known fact that evangelism is preponderantly an outdoor activity requiring the use of public address system to communicate messages.

“Christians also have biblical mandate to pray always including all night prayer. The prohibition of the use of loud speakers for religious purposes between 11pm and 4am as well as the restriction of playing religious recordings to only private places and designated places of worship is a well orchestrated plan to deny Christians the right to practice their religion and stifle the Christian faith. “This clearly portends danger and does not augur well for religious freedom, peace and harmony; and must be rejected by all well meaning Nigerians.

“Kaduna State has over the years suffered unnecessary ethno-religious crises with devastating consequences on the development of the state. These crises have largely been the product of political manipulation of religion by the elite for their selfish interests.

“We, therefore, do not believe in all sincerity that the Bill is the panacea to the incessant religious crises in Kaduna State. What is urgently required and necessary at this point is for Kaduna State Government to put in place policies and actions that will ensure and deepen justice, fairness and equity to all, religious tolerance, mutual respect, good governance and delivery of democracy dividends to the people irrespective of religion, ethnicity or political persuasions. The universal principle that says “there cannot be peace without justice” should be taken seriously and upheld at all levels of governance in our country.

“Having expressed our concern over the Bill and given our sincere desire for peace and development of Kaduna State and Nigeria at large, we appeal to Governor Nasir el-Rufai to discard this Bill and seek other better alternatives of addressing the religious challenge in Kaduna State. A robust engagement with religious leaders on a regular basis will be a productive option to consider. “We urge ECWA members and all Christians in Kaduna State and across the country to remain calm, law abiding, peaceful and prayerful. We commend Christian bodies that have decided to seek legal redress on the matter rather than take laws into their hands.

“As commanded in the Word of God, let us continue to uphold our leaders in prayer that God will guide them in the path of justice and righteousness and grant them the grace to do what is right at all times for the good of those they have been given the responsibility to govern. It is also necessary to remind leaders that one day they will stand before the Almighty God to give account of their stewardship.

“We believers should continue to pray and in faith believe the promises of our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ in the Bible and in particular in Matthew 16:18 that He the Lord will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it “, Rev Baba concluded.