TWO PROMINENT religious leaders, Bishop Charles Ighele and Professor Amidu Sanni, have expressed strong opposition to proposals for the establishment of a federal ministry dedicated to religious affairs.
They argued that such a ministry could exacerbate divisions among religious groups and lead to further complications.
The clerics, representing Christian and Muslim perspectives respectively, shared their views in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
Their remarks came in response to growing advocacy in certain quarters for the creation of a ministry to oversee religious matters more formally.
Bishop Ighele, General Superintendent of the Holy Spirit Mission in Ikeja, stated that the proposed ministry would not contribute to essential human capital development. “There is no justifiable need for such a ministry, as it would not advance national development in any meaningful way,” he said. “On the contrary, it would only inflate the already excessive cost of governance.”
He further cautioned that the appointment of a minister would likely provoke disputes over religious representation. “The first major contention would revolve around whether a Christian, Muslim, or traditionalist should head the ministry,” Ighele noted.
He also warned that disagreements over equitable staffing could become a persistent source of conflict, diverting attention and resources from critical national priorities.
Echoing similar concerns, Professor Sanni, Chief Imam of Lagos State University, asserted that establishing a religious ministry would only intensify existing tensions.
“Both intra- and inter-religious discord are already hindering national cohesion. Introducing a dedicated ministry would worsen these issues,” he said.
Sanni highlighted the inevitable challenges in leadership selection, questioning whether a Muslim, Christian, traditionalist, or atheist should oversee the ministry.
He recommended that the government minimize its involvement in religious matters, restricting its role to facilitating pilgrimage arrangements to sacred sites such as Saudi Arabia, Rome, and Israel.
Additionally, he emphasized the importance of promoting religious education in schools through well-structured curricula and qualified instructors to foster tolerance and peaceful coexistence among different faiths. (NAN)
