The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has advised Nigerians to exercise smart judgment when casting their ballots in next Saturday’s presidential election and to choose honest candidates who can both transform the nation’s economy and guarantee good governance.
In particular, the Bishops claimed that Nigerians will have yet another chance in their national history to reject bad leaders and elect those who will rule with the fear of God at the general election in 2023.
They urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and its officials to ensure that their conduct was impartial during their first plenary meeting, which was held at the CSN Resource Centre, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Durumi, in Abuja. The Communiqué was signed by the CBCN’s President, Most Rev. Lucius Ugorji, the Archbishop of Owerri, and Secretary, Most Rev. Donatus Ogun, OSA.
The communiqué also stated that the media have a crucial role to play in establishing good and democratic governance by giving the public the information they need to exercise their democratic rights and make well-informed decisions about public issues, as well as to engage the political class in debates about the issues that directly affect their lives.
The Bishops urged the federal government and its relevant agencies to immediately increase the circulation of new naira notes and put in place adequate and effective monetary policies that would lessen the hardship faced by the people in response to the challenging economy and its effects on the populace.
