21st December, 2016
Bishop Paulinus Ezeokafor of the Catholic Diocese of Awka has said Nigeria will not collapse against the prediction of doomsday prophets.
Ezeokafor who said this in his Christmas and New Year message in Awka, capital of Anambra, on Wednesday called on Nigerians to be hopeful in the Nigerian project.
He assured them that the nation would still come out of its challenges.
The bishop expressed hope that 2017 would not be different from the previous year noting that it would come with its sadness and joy.
“Nigeria will not collapse; our people must continue to live in hope, Nigeria will still come out of the woods and the responsibility of revamping the economy is that of all of us, not government alone.
“I see hope but I encourage us to adjust to the new situation in the country,” he said.
Ezeokafor, however, called on the federal and state governments to support the promotion of agriculture so that the nation could produce enough foodstuffs to feed its citizens.
He condemned the act where the wealthy and people in urban areas made no room within their compounds for farming no matter how small.
He urged them to cultivate if only gardening as a hobby.
The prelate said the crisis in the oil sector was a welcome development as it had redirected the attitudes of household and national economic managers.
“Any nation that cannot feed itself is doomed, we should endeavour not to spend on the importation of food, I think the fall in oil price is good for us,” he said.
The cleric prayed for a success celebration and better fortune in the year ahead while urging the government to combat all religious-related crises and other killings of innocent citizens.