By Ononye VC
The Bishop, Catholic Diocese of Ilorin, Most Reverend Anselm Pendo Lawani, has decried the pain and groaning many Nigerians are currently going through due to high inflation and high cost of living.
He lamented that the greater percentage of the populace is living below the poverty line amid the superabundance of human and natural resources the nation is blessed with.
The Catholic Bishop spoke on Tuesday in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during a press conference to mark the 2024 Democracy Day.
He said, “Many are living in squalor and slums, unable to have three square meals a day. The incessant increase in the pump price of petrol, occasioned by the subsidy removal from petroleum products last year, has continued to impact other sectors adversely.
“Prices of services and goods in the markets, including agricultural commodities, keep soaring in geometric progression. The situation is indeed gruesome and painful even as governments at different levels continue to grapple with some recovery initiatives for the nation’s economy.
“It is unfortunate that the palliative measures being distributed by the government have not significantly mitigated the effect of the subsidy removal policy. We appeal therefore that the government should
do more to bring succour to the impoverished citizens.”
On the ongoing minimum wage talk between the government and Organised Labour, Most Rev’d Lawani said the position of the Church is that a living wage should be paid to the workers, adding that it should be a wage that they can take to the market and return home smiling, not one that they would come back groaning.
While urging citizens to pay their taxes promptly to enable the government to deliver dividends of democracy to them, the cleric appealed to the government
not to impose unnecessary taxes that would be burdensome and overbearing for individuals and corporate organisations.
He said: “At the moment, it appears that those engaged in businesses and production ventures are reported to be heavily burdened with taxes of all kinds. Small businesses are highly troubled by it because it can lead to their insolvency. They need to be allowed to grow without tax burden as there were reported cases of double taxation in certain areas. This needs to be checked.
“Government can equally introduce tax holiday, tax moratoria and zero-tariff regimes or provide financial support for this category of entrepreneurs so that they can grow sustainably productive.”
Noting that the country is bedeviled with various security challenges, including terrorism, insurgency, kidnapping, inter-communal clashes, farmers/herders clashes, armed robbery, and banditry, Most Rev’d Lawani lauded the Kwara State Government for the various measures taken to address security problems facing the state, saying they are yielding positive results.
To stem the tide of insecurity in the country, the Bishop stressed the need for more to be done in the areas of intelligence gathering and surveillance, saying intelligence gathering is very significant in national security.
He said: “Citizens too must support security operatives by volunteering valuable information that is useful for preventive, rescuing and restorative purposes. It is our belief that a workable approach that can better enhance security requires collaboration among government agencies, traditional and community leaders as well as other stakeholders including the Church.
“Collaborative efforts on this will facilitate and promote sharing of information and experience towards suppressing potential security threats.”
