Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Kukah
A seminarian at the Good Shepherd Catholic Major Seminary in Kaduna State, Michael Nnadi, who was kidnapped and eventually murdered, was on Tuesday buried amid tears.
Friends, family, and colleagues could not hold back their tears as the body of the young seminarian was laid to rest at the premises of the school’s cemetery.
Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Kukah in his sermon asked Christians to keep their faith alive despite the trying moment.
He called on the government to adopt a holistic approach in fighting insecurity in the country rather than play the blame game.
The Bishop of Kaduna Diocese in his sermon described the security situation as a sign of a near failed state. He called for the sack of the service chiefs, whom he said have run out of fresh ideas to tackle the situation.
“The national and international reactions to the death of this young man have made me step back and ask what message God has for our country”.
“Michael is the first Seminarian to carry the mark of this brutality and wickedness. Priests have died in the hands of these wicked human beings. Michael was only a Seminarian in his first year of training. I had seen him in his cassock which he wore in my presence, not with pride but with dignity. Why would the tragic death of a young man such as him elicit such an unprecedented level of emotions here and around the world?”
Catholic Bishops Conference also during the burial called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in the nation’s security and protect its citizens from being killed endlessly.
The Bishop also added, ” today, our years of hypocrisy, duplicity, fabricated integrity, false piety, empty morality, fraud and Pharisaism have caught up with us. Nigeria is on the crossroads and its future hangs precariously in a balance. This is a wakeup call for us”.
“As St. Paul reminds us; The night is far spent, and the day is at hand. Therefore, let us cast away the works of darkness and put on the armour of light (Rom. 13:12). It is time to confront and dispel the clouds of evil that hover over us”.
“Nigeria is at a point where we must call for a verdict. There must be something that a man, nay, a nation should be ready to die for. Sadly, or even tragically, today, Nigeria, does not possess that set of goals or values for which any sane citizen is prepared to die for her”.
“Perhaps, I should correct myself and say that the average office holder is ready to die to protect his office but not for the nation that has given him or her that office.
Recall that Nnadi and three other seminarians were abducted from their hostel by kidnappers on January 10, 2020, and taken to an unknown destination.
While the three other victims were later released from captivity, Nnadi was not Lucky as he was killed and his corpse found along the Kaduna- Abuja highway on February 2nd.
The funeral mass had in attendance Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Kukah, Bishop of Kaduna Diocese, Most Reverend Mathew Ndagoso.
