By Everest Ezihe
John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja and one time Nigerian Prelate of the Catholic Church has enjoined the Federal Government of Nigeria and other levels of government both present and previous to accept responsibilities of unleashing to her populace unprecedented hardship.
Onaiyekan said this recently at the open field of C.I.C Umuchima in Ideato South Local Government Area of Imo State in his homily, marking the celebration of the Jubilee Year of Hope, 2025 which also coincided with Rev. Fr. Maurice Emelu, fiftieth birthday and the twentieth anniversary of his priestly ordination.
According to him, “those who have grabbed power to rule our nation must accept responsibility for the pains into which Nigerians have been plunged.
“They should know that they will account for their actions and inactions before the Almighty and Merciful God. The Church continues to pray for them to do the right things. But above all, we continue to pray for
Nigeria in distress, so that the Lord may deliver us “from chaos, anarchy and doom”.
“Beyond prayer, the Church has not abdicated
her responsibility to get involved in peacefully encouraging and facilitating a change for the better in the political and economic
management of our nation”.
Onaiyekan affirmed that the Church has always been involved in the social welfare of her people, especially through her traditional ministry of education and health care, noting that an educated and healthy nation will not be poor and hungry.
He pointed out that , with the present socio-economic crisis, it is about time Nigerian government should consider a return to the era of close collaboration between the Church and the state in the care of her people.
The Cardinal insisted that the Church on her own has serious limits, even as the state is obviously not coping, he called for a renewed and improved collaboration in the best interest of nation’s public services, and for the good of her people, especially of the poor who cannot afford costly private institutions.
He noted that the efforts of Mr. Peter Obi administration in Anambra State then yielded obvious fruits for all to see and admire.
“I wish to end this homily by bringing us back to the program of food distribution which Fr. Maurice has undertaken in these days. It is all in line with the concern of the Church for the poor and needy in the parishes.
“This is the experience of most parish priests, as they see the number of people seeking assistance from the parish office growing by the day. However, the scale of the program of the Gratia Vobis Ministry of Fr. Maurice and his team is quite extra-ordinary and a challenge to many others, both clergy and laity, at home and in diaspora.
“There may be those who would cynically ask what difference a one day distribution of food makes to a people in multidimensional poverty. I believe the beneficiaries of the program of Fr. Maurice will have their answer
ready. But as Fr. Maurice himself has said, this is “an act of faith, a manifestation of the Jubilee of Hope, and a testament to what
God has placed in my heart” he stated.
Onaiyekan observed that there are many other Nigerian priests, religious and lay faithful in the diaspora who can organize friends and come home to do what Fr. Maurice is now doing, instead of thinking only of their narrow family circle.
He equally opined that the same is true for those of us at home. “Times may be hard, but we could be more ready to share the little or the big that we have. It may not be for 1000 families. Programs for 500, 100, 50 or even 10, on a sustained scale can make an impact”.
He said it point blank that, “we continue to challenge our government to greater responsibility for taking care of the people whom they are supposed to be serving.
“In the meantime, we need to demonstrate greater solidarity with our brothers and sisters in need. The example of the early Church in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, when no one was in need, because there was generous sharing, should be for us all a model and a challenge. Our Father, who art in heaven, Give us this day our daily bread. Amen” he concluded.
Appreciating the unprecedented crowd and dignitaries, Father Maurice Emelu described himself as a priest, a child of God and a man of inter disciplinary approaches for learning and discovery.
Father Maurice as he is popularly known and called said that he is just a symbol of grace and committed in deeply healing and spiritually, sharing the love and grace of God, upon his life as equally what his NGO stands for
He reiterated that the NGO has done alot in empowering people in most countries of the world, even as they have equally been involved in the sponsorship of building houses for people and Convents especially in Minna and most Northern States.
Rev. Fr. Maurice Emelu, who’s the Founder of the international non governmental organization and Priest of the Catholic Diocese of Orlu, informed that they have a team of spiritual people who are passionate in helping and serving humanity.
He also informed that his neuclar ancestral family have bought and donated 100 plots of land to the NGO to establish free skills acquisition center and school for the people.
The Associate Professor of Communication & Digital Media at John Carroll University, USA also said that the event is inspired and motivated by God as God put it in his heart, to treat people the society may considered as less privileged and the poorest of the poor as queens and kings, so as to equally give them the sense of belonging and proud of their dignities.
” People may ask, what’s the essence of giving people food when they are living in abject poverty, and hopelessness,what can 50 kg of rice to each family of 5 do to them ?.
“When people asked that kind of question, they easily forgot that often transformation is a product of psyche or mind set, if in all your life, you think you are nobody, you think you have no name, and you feels you are big for nothing, it’s a gospel truth, and it’s equally evidently very difficult for you to walk out of the poverty situation and mentality.
“But incidentally, if for the first time in your life, you feel honoured and appreciated for just whom you are, that can change your life and mind sets, that’s the first step of change that begins from inner self and begins from there, before you can talk of the complete thing, that’s just the beginning because we have a longer mission of how do we translate that into skills rather, that’s where the whole idea of seminar, institution and setting them up comes in because we’re thinking in that direction. That if the people have competence and skills they can easily and positively change their world, especially if their spirits are willing or centered with the spirit of Jesus Christ, who came, simply to change lives and bear witnesses over his name. It’s just a step to bigger step” he assured.
“Am not a politician, I care less about political things as I care about human beings and God. However, those in government should know that as leaders they are called to change the society for good.
“Government doesn’t not build a society nor establish businesses, rather government make policies, structures, grants and establish enabling environments that would enable individuals to develop their communities.
“The major problem Nigeria has, is that it has too big a government, you can not run the people to growth if every decision comes from Abuja or from the States, there should be a complete feeling of governance, for instance, government has no business establishing businesses, if eventually they do, those businesses will not flourished.
“However, it’s the duty of the government to make policies that could offer people assess to grants, that could help them establish businesses and have trainings to develop their skills in the business initiatives they wants to embarked upon, for instance, investments in electricity, education, health and roads are very important social responsibilities of the government
“If Nigerians could have 18 hours sustainable power supply, Nigeria as a nation will certainly be, the hub of the global communities. My focus is how can Nigerian government establish infrastructures that would aid in transforming the society. For me, poverty will only be eradicated by changing the people’s mindset and development of infrastructures that reduces and eradicates poverty.
“What am doing is not palliative, there’s a spirit to it, we want to be seen as being in the vanguard of restoring human dignity and confidence through positive minds set.
“If people consistently receives palliative they will be continually engrossed into poverty, this is exactly what destroyed many nations of the world, but if the people could be shown how to fish and create the enabling environments like good roads, pipe borne water, health, commerce, education etc, they can fish every day and feed themselves without looking beggarly and loosing their dignity.
“Change the infrastructure, I don’t mean building, I mean old organizational organigram that could make it impossible for a child in the village to start a business and function well, and have a return on investment”.
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