Abuja: The Primate of All Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, has urged Nigerian youths to resist being used as political thugs by self-serving politicians. Speaking with newsmen on the sidelines of the 15th Anglican Chancellors, Registrars, and Legal Officers Conference (ACRLOC) in Abuja, Ndukuba expressed concerns that politicians were exploiting poverty and hunger to advance their ambitions.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Ndukuba noted that unscrupulous politicians were leveraging economic hardships to buy votes and recruit vulnerable youths for acts of violence. He highlighted the disparity in how politicians treat their own children compared to underprivileged youths, pointing out that while politicians send their biological children to study abroad, they provide drugs and money to disadvantaged youths to engage in electoral violence.
Ndukuba urged politicians to approach politics with a sense of humanity and to focus on issue-based campaigns so that elected officials can be held accountable by citizens. He emphasized that poverty renders people susceptible to manipulation, but insisted that young citizens should not allow themselves to be exploited by desperate politicians.
He further observed that none of these politicians would send their own children to partake in violent acts, stressing the importance for Nigerian youths to reject all forms of thuggery and violence. Ndukuba also highlighted that politics affects every section of society, including transport workers, commercial tricycle operators, market women, and religious bodies.
The Primate called on all Nigerians, particularly Christians, to actively engage in political processes by registering with political parties, participating in internal party democracy, and holding electoral and security agencies accountable. He expressed optimism that state policing and active citizen engagement could transform upcoming election cycles into pivotal moments for Nigeria’s future.
During his keynote address, Ndukuba provided updates on the Global Anglican Communion (GAC) following the historic G26 conference held in Abuja. He noted that the Global Anglican Council marked a constitutional shift, moving orthodox Anglicanism from geographical dependencies toward a confessional, Scripture-centered global covenant.
Earlier, Mrs. Kehinde Ajoni, the Registrar of the Church, stated that the conference aimed to realign church administration with unwavering moral integrity. Ajoni urged legal officers across all dioceses to serve as the sole voice of moral conscience during internal dispute resolutions. The conference, themed: ‘As For Me and My Household, We Will Serve the Lord’, is scheduled to run from Aug. 3 to Aug. 6.