Catholic Bishops: Kaduna Killings, A Declaration Of War Against The Helpless, Innocent
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The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has expressed worry at the rising number of unjustifiable killings going on in Kaduna state and other parts of the country, describing it as a “declaration of war against helpless and innocent Nigerians.”
President of the CBCN, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, said that the evolving culture of brutality and wanton destruction to human lives in the country had become alarming and unparalleled in the history of the nation.
Kaigama in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, said it was imperative that Nigerians have a rethink with regards to wastage of human lives.
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The Catholic cleric observed that the taking of human lives just because it suited ones religious, ethnic, political or even criminal aspirations was unjustifiable and should not be the practice in a civilised world.
“How can human lives be so casually terminated with pictures of dead bodies, decapitated or disfigured corpses shown in the social media.
“What is mind-boggling is the seeming insensitivity to the killings. Does it not trouble us that the international community is watching Nigeria with great apprehension?
“The scriptures say that God created man and woman and asked them to increase and multiply and fill the earth, not to depopulate it by act of violence.
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“The manner lives are being taken right now in Southern Kaduna and many other troubled areas of our nation is tantamount to a declaration of war against helpless and innocent Nigerians.”
Pointing at killings in Agatu, Madagali, Gwoza, Yobe, Plateau, Taraba, Nasarawa, Anambra, Abia and now Southern Kaduna, he said these could impact negatively on the younger generation growing with the impression that life was cheap and could be taken away at the whims of anyone or any group that so desired.
“For how long will killings, associated with demented or irrational reasoning continue to be witnessed, especially in Southern Kaduna before a concerted effort is made to stop such carnage permanently.
“When will one Nigerian life matter or must people be killed in thousands or millions before we realise the humongous damage done to our people.
“We are becoming so sadistic that we do not see that such brutality creates a culture of impunity, chaos, anarchy and doom; as if the needless killing by Boko Haram is not enough. “A culture is developing that does not seem to know the difference between the lives of human beings and that of cows, goats, rams, chickens.’’
