Bishop Timothy Yahaya, the Archbishop of Kaduna Diocese, Anglican Communion, says bandits and other criminal elements are highly educated and more intelligent than the nation’s security operatives.
He said for the nation to win the war against banditry and other criminal activities, the security personnel must be trained and retrained to cope with the schemes of the criminals in parts of the country.
Speaking on Sunday in Kaduna shortly before ordaining five Priests and 12 Deacons, Bishop Yahaya advised the federal government to ensure the recruitment of thousands of security personnel to be able to wage war against the bandits.
He lamented that the number of criminals in the bush outnumbered the security personnel fighting them, suggesting that academic qualifications for Police should be a National diploma.
He said, “I want to believe that at the national level our leaders have accepted the reality that it is no easy task for Nigerians. And therefore, I want us to work in various dimensions; number one dimension is that we must declare a state of emergency on the security of Nigeria.”
“We are supposed to open Depots across the country to recruit soldiers and police in thousands to beat these men in the bush because it is like the number of the men we have in the bush have outnumbered our security men. We need a security emergency,” he added.
He stressed the need for practical diversification of the country’s economy, saying that Nigeria can feed the entire continent if properly applied.
For the country to move forward, Bishop Yahaya observed that there must be a cordial relationship between agriculture and industry, saying that by doing so, the country would grow economically.
He added that for the economy to grow, Nigerians must patronize made in Nigeria as a means of adding value to what the country produces and its currency.
The Bishop, however, assured that the problems of Nigeria would become a thing of the past if the country looks unto God and live exemplary lives and tell themselves the truth irrespective of any differences.
Speaking on Priesthood ordination, he said, “We are very careful not to ordain unworthy people because the world has been saturated with ministers, but ministering nothing. So we are very careful that the men we are ordaining and sending out today are trustworthy, credible, reliable, dynamic and pragmatic men to make an impact and change our generation. We want to call on all leaders that have authority to ordain to be very careful who they ordain because even the Bible says don’t be quick to lay your hands who you want to ordain.”