By Pwanagba Agabus, Jos
The Cardinal Onaiyekan Foundation for Peace in partnership with the Catholic Diocese of Shendam in Plateau State, has organised one-day symposium on interreligious dialogue.
Declaring the event open on Saturday in Shendam, the Bishop of the Diocese, Most Rev. Philip Dung, said that the event aims at sensitising religious leaders and other critical stakeholders toward promoting peace and harmony in our communities.
Dung was represented by Rev. Fr. Vincent Diyong, the Director of the Inter-religious Dialogue Commission of the Diocese and Fellow of the Onaiyekan foundation.
The Bishop explained that the symposium would afford the participants the opportunity to interact on best ways to achieve lasting peace in the locality and the State in general.
He maintained that most of the conflicts in the state were largely economic and political, but given religous colouration by crisis merchants.
”We find it very important that both Christians and Muslims should coexist, this is why we organise this activity with the support of the Cardinal Onaiyekan Foundation for Peace.
”Most of our conflicts are either economic or political, but usually given religious undertone by those who benefit from it,” he said.
Speaking on the theme of the symposium, ”Hate Speech and Interreligious Conflict, the Bane of Interreligious Harmony and Peace Building” Mr. Emmanuel Idakwo, urged participants peddling hate speeches capable of sparking religious conflicts.
Idakwo, a lecturer at the Department of Mass Communication, Federal University, Lafia, called on religious leaders to desist from inciting sermons.
In his remarks, the Transition Implementation Committee (TIC) Chairman of Shendam, Mr Kemi Nshe, commended the organisers of the event, insisting that it would complement government’s peace building efforts.
