As a follow up to my earlier article on “What the church must do to rescue Delta on March 11, 2023,” I’m putting up this article to remind Christian leaders in Delta state that our future and that of unborn generation should be of paramount importance more than our immediate satisfaction. What this article aims to achieve is to let church leaders in the state look beyond the immediate financial gain and focus on the future of this state.
The destiny of this state and Nigeria is in the hands of the church. Yes, the calamities befalling the country is because Nigeria Christians have abandoned their responsibility to the nation and are pursuing mundane and ephemeral things that add no value to their existence. If Christian leaders were standing by their words and resisting pressure from corrupt leaders, Delta state and the country would have been better than what it is now.
The 2023 election is presenting yet another opportunity for church leaders to stand by their words and say NO to corruption. At the national level, many church leaders have made great statements, calling on their followers to vote people of competence, impeccable character and proven integrity for the good of this nation. I do not need name such leaders but suffice it to say that powerful church leaders both in Abuja and Lagos where Nigerian mega churches are headquartered have made great comments, imploring their followers to vote credible candidates in the February 25 presidential election.
In Delta state, church leaders have also made such commitments to vote a credible and incorruptible candidate for the office of the governor of Delta state. Among the three major contenders, Olorogun Barrister Kenneth Gbagi has been rated among church leaders as the most credible of all the candidates gunning for the plum job. They have seen him as the most incorruptible candidate in the race to the number one office in the state.
From the staple of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) and other affiliate Christian bodies, Olorogun Barrister Kenneth Gbagi has been adjudged as the man with the needed criteria for the office of the governor. Church leaders are seen as the mirror of society as their words carry weight, honour, respect and dignity.
From the North through to Central and Southern Delta state, Christian leaders have affirmed unequivocally that Olorogun Barrister Kenneth Gbagi is the man following his humane lifestyle, affiliation to the church, plans and purpose for the Christian community and his lofty ideals for the industrialisation and even development of the state.
For the past four months, Gbagi had toured churches across the three senatorial districts, sharing the good news of a new and beautiful Delta. In all the churches he visited, he told the leaders that Delta is in dire need of a passionate leader who will surmount the political will, abandon personal ambition and create a state where everyone will have a sense of belonging.
He reasoned with them on the need for church leaders to jettison the immediate gratification and look towards the greater good of the majority of Delta people. His plans, as he unraveled to them, encompasses the youths, students, the old man and the old woman. He explained that the church has not been given due recognition by the successive governments, hence his administration is poised to change the status quo in Delta state.
Reports which went viral revealed that the pastors and the Christian leaders who received him in all the congregations and assemblies thumbed up for his boldness and political will to change the long built narrative that had crippled the economy of the state. Gbagi has consistently noted that Delta is richer than 40 countries in the world but due to heavily corrupt leaders and misgovernance, Delta people are living in penury and hunger.
His belief is that everyone living in Delta should benefit from the funds acruable to the state. The benefit is not necessarily dishing the money and spraying it on the people, it involves creating opportunities and infrastructure where everyone with the technical knowledge can build a business and earn a befitting living for themselves and their immediate and extended families
Gbagi’s plan is that no family or individual should be poor or begging for means of survival in any of the 25 local government areas of the state. From students in the primary, post primary and tertiary institutions to graduates, artisans, parents, civil servants, pensioners and others, everyone should be engaged in meaningful and productive ventures.
His plans and programmes elicited supports from the church where many made commitment to ensuring his emergence as governor of the state. The onus now lies in the hands of the church leaders to match their words with action as the governorship election holds on March 11, 2023. Church leaders should not only make statements but should stand by their words and bring them to reality.
Church leaders should not trade the destiny of our children on the altar of momentary financial gain. The future of this state should be our utmost priority. As we all work and walk towards the general elections, it is believed that church leaders in the state will not rubbish their words but stand resolutely, encourage their followers and join hands with Gbagi to rescue Delta from bad leaders.
