Church must move from pulpit to people - Peter Obi

---

---

By Madu Obi

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Mr Peter Obi, has called on the church to take a more practical and people-centred role in youth empowerment and community development.

Speaking on the theme, "The role of the church in youth empowerment and community development" at the synod of the Enugu Anglican Diocese, Obi said Nigeria’s regeneration depends on the values religious institutions instil in society.

According to him, preaching alone is no longer enough in a society weighed down by moral decay, unemployment, and a growing number of unskilled youths, saying the church must move from pulpit to the people.

He emphasized the need for the church and other serious religious groups to lead in building character, which he described as the foundation of any meaningful development.

Commending the Enugu Catholic Diocese for its practical investments in agriculture, Obi highlighted his recent visit to the diocesan farm with the Auxiliary Bishop, Most Rev. Dr. Ernest Obodo, adding that such initiatives provide young people with skills, employment, and a pathway to sustainable community development.

Drawing global parallels, he stated how countries with limited natural resources have achieved food security through disciplined productivity, contrasting it with Nigeria, where, he added, its vast arable lands remain underutilized.

Obi maintained that religious institutions, while not interfering with governance, must help redirect the nation toward a culture of hard work, responsibility, and productivity.

Citing his conversation with Professor James Robinson, co-author of “Why Nations Fail”, he explained that nations stagnate not because they lack knowledge, but because they fail to implement what is necessary for progress.

He said Nigeria reflects this reality and needs institutions, including religious organisations to positively drive behavioural and value change among the youth.

He also referenced the positive impact of strengthening church–state collaboration in sectors such as healthcare, noting that hospitals like Iyienu and Borromeo in Anambra State achieved higher standards and became teaching hospitals because they were properly supported.

Obi also sited the improvement in education consequent upon the involvement of religious institutions, adding that it proves that the church has the capacity to uplift communities and help shape a more disciplined and productive society.

Obi also urged the church to intensify its commitment to value formation, mentorship, productivity education, and practical initiatives that uplift communities.

Expressing gratitude to Obi, the Bishop of the Diocese expressed gratitude to the former Anambra State governor for his consistent goodness to society and prayed that God would grant him the opportunity to continue rendering greater service to the nation.