A religious peace deal was struck by the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in order to defuse religious tensions and ensure peace before, during, and after the general elections in 2023.
The peace agreement was signed on Wednesday in Washington, D.C., by the two leading religious organisations in Nigeria, as part of the ongoing International Religious Freedom Summit 2022, which is being put on by the Global Peace Foundation in cooperation with other international human rights and religious freedom organisations.
Prof. Yusuf Usman represented the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, as President-General of the NSCIA, while Rev. Samson Ayokunle, the CAN’s immediate past president, represented the organisation.
A statement issued by Ayokunle following the agreement, noted that the leadership of the umbrella Muslim and Christian organisations have “pledged to continue to work together, avoid violence, embrace dialogue and remain committed to building resilient communities that are free from fear.”
“This is a difficult time in Nigeria, with ever-escalating security crises and an overwhelming loss of trust in the government. And unfortunately, so much of the crisis in Nigeria has had a religious context.
“I recall the horrifying death of Deborah Emmanuel Yakubu murdered by a mob because of allegations of blasphemy. Likewise, the shocking attack on the St Francis Xavier Catholic Church on Pentecost Sunday that left so many dead, and nearly every day there seems to be another priest kidnapped or killed.
“At the same time, I know that there are so many across Nigeria, Muslims and Christians alike, who abhor this violence and only want to live in peace with their brethren of other faiths as we have done for so long.
“The Sultan of Sokoto is one of those men, and I thank him for how he swiftly condemned these kinds of attacks.
“We will only build a stronger Nigeria that is able to tackle these urgent issues that are destroying our country from lack of security, accountability, and corruption, to conflicts between different peoples and faiths, to hunger and the economic situation, if we religious leaders determine together to truly lead our people,” he said.
Ayokunle said it was important for the NSCIA and CAN to sign the ‘Declaration for a Peaceful and Secure Nigeria,’ and to do so on the world stage.
“The Declaration we signed lays out a number of principles that we believe all Nigerians can readily affirm.
“It states that all people are endowed by the Creator with inherent value and fundamental rights, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, culture, region or the many other differences that often divide us, and that the essential freedom and dignity of every person must be respected and protected.”
