Secretary-General, Anglican Communion Worldwide, Bishop Josiah Idowu Fearon, has said there is too much hatred, anger and fear among residents of Kaduna State.
According to him, ignorance fuelled by the segregation of the people along religious and ethnic lines was behind the negative mindset.
Addressing the joint graduation ceremony for certificate and diploma graduands of Kaduna Centre for the Study of Christian – Muslim Relations yesterday, Fearon said: “There is too much hatred in Kaduna State; we so hate each other. That is why we are not making too much progress.
“Ignorance and all that comes with it – anger, fear, hatred, and conflict – happens because we separate ourselves from those that we disagree with and from the ‘other’.
“We might do this out of concern for ourselves – that if we are seen to be speaking with someone, who is the ‘other’, that it will damage our reputation with our own communities. But this also happens because of fear and sometimes hatred.
“These are things that we must also work against. And we must resist this temptation to separate ourselves from those who are different and with whom we disagree. We must engage in activities together. It is not enough to simply have knowledge and understanding in your head. You must also practice what you learn. Religious leaders can set a good example in engaging in activities with leaders from the ‘other’ religion.”
Governor Nasir El-Rufai, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe, said that though the state has witnessed many crises due to differences, there is a policy guideline in place on the interpretation of religion.
He added that teaching and propagating the message through the right channel will reduce the challenges.
Former Governor of Kaduna State and former caretaker chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, PDPD, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, said peace is vital and a key denominator to everybody. He urged the graduands to practice what they learn to contribute to peaceful coexistence in the country and show that they value what they learnt.
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