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Agenda Setting : Lawan challenges Nigeria media

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President of the Nigerian Senate, Ahmad Lawan has challenged the media to set an agenda for a brighter future for the country.

Lawan acknowledged that the media had a crucial role to play in averting national crises and anarchy through positive actions that douses tension across the country and stabilizes the polity.

The Senate President made the remarks in a speech delivered on Thursday at the 10th Anniversary and 2020 Impact Series Awards of Blueprint Newspapers in Abuja.

Lawan who chaired the occasion, said efforts must be made by the media to provide proper context to issues, as doing so would in turn ensure national unity and reshape public opinion.

He, therefore, called on the media in Nigeria to reaffirm their faith in Nigeria and rededicate themselves to their role as the fourth estate of the realm.

He said, “That role requires them to responsibly moderate public conversation and debate, douse tension, resolve disputes including providing context for issues, and help in stabilizing the polity.

“In this age of information, the media plays a crucial role in creating national unity and remodeling of public opinions.

“It is true that public opinion is always disturbed during a crisis. But in such situations, the media can control the public emotions and public opinion with a positive attitude.

“Without positive attitude in the media, even the best efforts of policy makers and government cannot produce results.

“Let us remember that crisis is inevitable in society. Indeed, it drives development when properly managed.

“The Nigerian media must, therefore, always seek to help the nation turn its crises into wheels of progress.

“This they can do by providing useful information to calm the people and encourage them to do positive actions.

“In the current situations, the media should seek information only from credible sources in order to limit the spread of fake news.

“They should avoid information that is capable of inciting violence and reprisals.

“When law and order succumb to anarchy, even lawmakers, journalists and journalism are endangered”, Lawan said.

The Senate President lauded Blueprint Newspaper for its patriotic desire to contribute positively towards building a stable democracy in Nigeria, as well as promoting unity, peace and prosperity.

“I consider your choice in this respect highly commendable, especially in the light of many around you losing their heads and reputation to the urge to bait clicks, with sensational headlines and odious stories that promote hat and division in the country”, he said.

Speaking on the security crises in the country, Lawan lamented that the spate of insecurity in recent times had taken “an alarming dimension with killings, kidnappings and wanton attacks on public facilities becoming daily events in many parts of the country.”

He added that, “while government is forthright and unrelenting in its efforts to contain the security challenges, the crisis is certainly being aggravated by people cynically projecting our ethnic, religious, cultural and geographical diversities as the primary cause of political instability and social insecurity in Nigeria.”

On the ongoing constitution review exercise, the Senate President disclosed that the National Assembly had received hundreds of memoranda from across the country and many bills proposed for consideration.

According to him, the exercise seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s democratic institutions such as the Legislature and the Judiciary at the national and subnational levels, the local government system, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Civil Society.

He explained that the move would check abuses and strife responsible for holding back the development of Nigeria’s economy and polity.

 

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Clergy Urged To Put Members’ Welfare Above All Else

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Anglican Church logo

At a solemn ordination service in Abuja, senior church leaders have called on pastors to make the well-being of their congregations a top priority, following the example of Jesus Christ.

Speaking during the priesthood ordination and installation of a Sub Dean at the Cathedral Church of Advent, Life Camp, Abuja, the retired Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Okene, Rt. Rev. Emmanuel Ajulo, described pastors as shepherds charged with the care of their flock. He urged them to shun worldly distractions and focus on meeting the spiritual and material needs of their members.

Bishop Ajulo also encouraged the newly ordained priests to remain faithful to their calling by teaching God’s word without compromise.

In his charge, the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, urged the new clergy to preach the undiluted gospel and foster religious harmony wherever they serve. He expressed confidence that their new roles would help promote peace and unity in society.

The service also featured prayers for national leaders and divine intervention in addressing the current global economic challenges.

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1,000 Prayer Warriors Storm Ilorin for Tinubu, Nation’s Deliverance

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

In a dramatic show of faith and patriotism, over 1,000 fiery prayer warriors from across Nigeria will descend on Ilorin, Kwara State, this Saturday, lifting their voices in intense intercession for President Bola Tinubu’s success and Nigeria’s survival in the face of biting economic woes and mounting insecurity.

The spiritual siege, themed “Walking in Domini”, is the maiden convention of the Organisation of African Instituted Churches (OAIC), with its Kwara State Chairman, Evangelist Thomas Adeboye, vowing that “heaven will hear and respond to Nigeria’s cry.”

Aside from marathon prayers, the gathering will roll out free medical outreach to locals across Kwara’s LGAs, a gesture aimed at touching both body and soul.

Adeboye, lamenting Nigeria’s “troubling economic and security realities”, called for a nationwide prayer uprising, insisting that Tinubu has shown the will to revive the nation but needs massive divine backing to succeed.

“Banditry, a collapsing economy, and political tension demand we seek God’s face like never before,” he declared. “We will storm heaven for wisdom for the President and governors to steer Nigeria to safety.”

The convention will also feature awards to distinguished personalities, soul-lifting worship, fiery sermons, and unity-driven lectures—all capped with thunderous prayers for Nigeria’s redemption.

Adeboye urged the President to ensure every policy has “a human face,” stressing that Nigerians must not only endure but also enjoy the fruits of governance.

With the OAIC promising to reaffirm believers’ authority in Christ and rally spiritual boldness in the face of national challenges, Ilorin is set to become the epicentre of a powerful spiritual warfare for Nigeria’s destiny.

 

 

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Nigerian Anglicans Condemn Lesbian Archbishop of Wales, Deepening Global Anglican Rift

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…Church leaders accuse Welsh counterparts of “spiritual decadence” and “abandonment of faith”

The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) has issued a forceful condemnation of the election of Rt. Rev. Cherry Vann, an openly lesbian cleric, as the Archbishop of Wales. The move is the latest in a series of developments that have deepened divisions within the global Anglican Communion over sexuality and doctrine.

In a statement from Primate The Most Rev’d Henry Ndukuba, the church denounced the election as a “serious departure from biblical teaching” and a sign of “spiritual decadence” and “an outright abandonment of the faith once delivered to the saints.”

Archbishop Ndukuba warned that Bishop Vann’s elevation compromises the Anglican Church’s global mission and could obstruct evangelism. He compared the situation to the controversial tenure of Most Rev. Katherine Jefferts Schori, former Presiding Bishop of the U.S. Episcopal Church, who also faced intense criticism from conservative Anglicans for her progressive views.

The Primate accused Bishop Vann of being complicit in the “ongoing crisis” around same-sex issues, stating that the election is a “clear revelation that many who claim to be members of the body of Christ cannot endure sound doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:3–4).

The Church of Nigeria called on Anglicans worldwide to reject “rebels” and “apostates” and to instead support conservative bodies like the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON).

“The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) condemns, unequivocally rejects, and will not recognize the election of Rt. Rev. Cherry Vann as Archbishop of Wales,” Ndukuba declared. He concluded with a solemn warning that without repentance, the Church in Wales risks losing “complete relevance” and its leaders will face judgment.

 

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