Gbolahan Salman Sokoto

In a powerful Easter message delivered during the Vigil on Holy Saturday, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto issued a stirring appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urging him to rescue Nigerians from what he described as “a cross of pain, brutality, and hopelessness.”

Using biblical symbolism to highlight Nigeria’s spiraling crises, Kukah likened the nation’s suffering to Christ’s crucifixion, lamenting a country engulfed by insecurity, hunger, poverty, and moral collapse.

“Mr. President, Nigeria is reaching a breaking point. The nation is gradually becoming a huge national morgue… With a greater sense of urgency, hasten to bring us down from this cross of evil,” Kukah declared.

While admitting that Tinubu did not create Nigeria’s current challenges, Kukah insisted that leadership demands action, not excuses.

“You neither erected this cross nor effected our collective crucifixion… Yet, Nigerians have been dangling and bleeding on this cross of pain for too long,” he added.

The bishop condemned the persistence of insecurity and the normalization of violence, citing rampant kidnappings, banditry, and a growing sense of helplessness among citizens. He also addressed the fallout from the fuel subsidy removal, stressing that it has worsened the country’s socio-economic conditions.

“Mr. President, please bring us down from this painful cross of hunger,” he pleaded, calling on the government to make food security a constitutional right for all citizens.

Kukah also alluded to past confessions by political actors who admitted to importing mercenaries as a strategy to seize power—warning that the consequences of such decisions now threaten the very fabric of Nigeria.

“Are Nigerians lambs being sacrificed to an unknown god?” he asked, posing tough questions on the government’s capacity and will to protect its citizens.

Despite the harsh tone, Kukah’s message carried a glimmer of hope. He referenced Pope Francis’ declaration of 2025 as the Year of Hope, encouraging Nigerians to remain resilient and faithful in the face of adversity.

“These times of great suffering should be times of hope… Hope that does not disappoint,” he said.