Cardinal John Onaiyekan, Catholic Bishop Emeritus of Abuja, has tasked political leaders to rebuild the trust of Nigerian youths in their fatherland through good leadership.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday that such trust was necessary to secure the future of the country.
He spoke on the sideline of the Christmas Carol organised by Mr Emmanuel Njoku, Managing Director, Prezzo Shed Investments Limited, in Abuja.
The event tagged: “Carol Night of Nine Lessons and Songs”, had in attendance the Abuja Choral Ensemble, clerics and other Nigerians from different backgrounds.
According to Onaiyekan, the Nigerian youths are losing hope and trust in the country because of successive bad leadership at all levels.
He lamented that the youths’ frustration was demonstrated in their willingness to leave the country in their hordes to Europe and other parts of the world in search for a better life.
The former president of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), warned that if nothing was done urgently to reverse the tide, the future of the country would be bleak.
“That young people have lost confidence in the country and are leaving is not good news.
“A nation, whose youths are running away, has no future and our political leaders need to rebuild that trust.
“The leaders are supposed to organise all sectors in such a way that nobody is hungry and that people are not running into poverty.
“Every day we are hearing that the rate of poverty is increasing, that is not good news, and If I was the president, I would feel bad.
“But I will not ‘Japa’; I am not going anywhere. I will stay here and continue to shout that the right thing should be done, and you cannot turn what is wrong into right,” he said.
Earlier in his short sermon, Onaiyekan had urged Nigerians to use the season to share what they had with their neighbours, as giving was what characterised the message of Christmas.
He said: “Resist the temptation of monopolising Jesus in the Christmas season and share the joy of Christmas with everyone.
“If you can help one or two persons, do just that, because we all must do what we can to reach out to our neighbors this season,” he said.
In his remarks, Njoku, the host, said the Carol Night was an annual event organised to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ and to re-echoe the message of love for neighbour and humanity.
“Christmas represents giving and love, which is what God did for us by giving us Jesus Christ; we must also demonstrate that to others,” he said.
NAN reports that the highpoint of the event was the cutting of the Christmas cake by the host and his family, flanked by clerics and followed by sections of songs performances.(NAN)