Matthew Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, says Nigerians are frustrated by the outcome of the 2023 election and also believe that justice has eluded them.
In a statement on Sunday, Kukah described Nigerians as men and women returning from a funeral with forlorn looks.
The cleric condemned the violence that trailed the elections, saying it cannot be accepted as the new ladder to power.
“Nigerians are so collectively frustrated that it is almost impossible to convince them that they can find justice,” Kukah said.
Everywhere you turn today, Nigerians look forlorn, disconsolate, lugubrious, and despondent. Our swagger is gone. We look like men and women returning from a funeral, murmuring discontentment in hushed tones. It is therefore not surprising that even the victors are blowing a muted trumpet.
“Unpleasant as this may sound, this blood that they have shed could be seen as the blood of the birth of a new Nigeria. It can become the blood of our new birth, our redemption. However, we cannot accept that violence and bloodshed are the normal routes to power. Because like the blood of Abel, the blood of those who have been murdered continues to cry out to heaven seeking justice ( Gen. 4:10).”