Kukah urges agitators to go through National Assembly

The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Hassan Kukah, has said there is nothing wrong
with anybody or region wanting to leave Nigeria as long as such request or desire is channelled through the National Assembly, which is the appropriate and constitutional means.
Kukah, while responding to questions during the 2016 Fathers’ Day celebration marked by the Catholic Church of Nativity in FESTAC Town, Lagos yesterday, said Nigerians must come to term that democracy has given us the freedom to express ourselves not just verbally but in action.
According to him: “I don’t have a problem with anybody wanting to leave Nigeria or requesting for a new state or local council, there is absolutely nothing wrong. The only thing wrong is if you fail to understand that we are in democracy and the only way to achieve that is through the National Assembly.”

The cleric said it is not possible for President Muhammadu Buhari to create or give a new local council or state to any group of people or region, saying: “If you want an independent Biafra State, household or any other form of independence, the only way to go about it is not by violent agitation but by talking to those who represent you in the National Assembly. Your representatives can sponsor a bill and if the bill is passed and signed, then you can get whatever you want.”
He blamed politicians for the series of crises in the country, saying: “The political class should be held responsible for the crises we have in the society today. Public office holders are not appointed but elected and the reason they were elected is not to make money but to serve the country.
But as you can see very clearly, what we are having so far is anything but service and this is why when I hear politicians say we cannot develop in an environment that is violent or volatile. Politicians do not understand that it is their irresponsible behaviours that are creating violence and tension. Ordinarily, an armed robber wants to live in peace.“My idea is that Nigerian politicians must come to the fact that politics is a noble vocation.”