…says Nigeria will not disintegrate
…Tinubu is not against help – Deputy Speaker Kalu
… Nigeria needs urgent help to tackle kidnapping, insecurity – Archbishop Onuoha
Following the level of insecurity in the country, the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Remi Tinubu, has said Nigeria welcomes help from foreign countries, but not with intimidation.
She emphasised that Nigeria will never be disgraced.
The First Lady spoke in Abuja on Sunday during a thanksgiving service for the Investiture and presentation of Most Rev Sunday Onuoha as Archbishop on Special Duties at the Methodist Church Nigeria.
Senator Tinubu said Nigeria will come out of the present situation stronger and better in peace with disintegration.
Represented by the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Bishop Stephen Adegbite, she underscored the significance of prayer in preserving Nigeria’s unity and stability.
The First Lady said, “You must continue to pray for our nation, continue to pray for the church. Nobody should live in denial.
“Just like every other nation, Nigeria needs help. But our help will come from God, who is the maker of heaven and earth. He will not allow our feet to stumble. He is the one who is keeping watch over us.
“The lord will prevent Nigeria from going into disarray day and night. Every time we call upon God, he will be there for us. Whoever wants to give Nigeria help is welcome, but never with intimidation. Nigeria will never be a disgraceful nation. Nigeria is our pride. Nigeria is our hope. Nigeria will not disintegrate.
“Nigeria will remain one indivisible entity because next week we go into harvest. God will be with Nigeria. He stood with the Israelites for 40 years in the wilderness, and they came out. And by the grace of God, Nigeria will come out stronger. The coming Christmas will be celebrated in peace and joy, and it shall be well with Nigeria”.
Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, also said President Bola Tinubu is not against help, but he wants help that will further unite the country and not the one that will divide its citizens.
He said Tinubu listens to every detail and he always takes the right decision in the interest of the country
Kalu said he will support any intervention from a foreign country that will not result in confrontation, adding that he will embrace any help that does not challenge the sovereignty of Nigeria.
He commended the celebrant for his steadfastness and concern for the church and the entire country.
He said, “It’s difficult to build a nation without having the stakeholders, you know, on the table. And the stakeholders, if you are drawing the stakeholders’ engagement list, you cannot leave the church, the faith-based organization. And this administration recognizes that. That is why we are placing relevance on what comes out of the church. You know, what should come out should be a message of hope. Yes, we are passing through a troubled time.
“When a nation is in need of help, as long as there is no confrontation, every nation will embrace help the same way we have embraced funds, in the form of loans and all the rest of them. If we need help with regards to security, which does not challenge the sovereignty of our nation, which does not brand us as a disgraceful nation, which does not make us look like we don’t know what we are doing, we can always partner with our allies to make sure that the help that is needed is gotten for our nation. And I think the president is not averse to that. Mr. President is a democrat, and he’s reaching out. One of the first things he did when he came into power was to go around to give legitimacy to his government by making sure he extended a hand of friendship across the globe.
“Those hands of friendship extended. They will not be against Nigeria. They will be for Nigeria and solving Nigeria’s problems.
“We need messages that will increase our progress and unity. And that was what I was saying. The man who was promoted to Archbishop today has been a man who has shown that being in the church does not mean turning your back on the states. There has been a bridge between the states and the faiths.
“He asked all the organizations that had to do with peace, any type of faith relationship. And that is the kind of energy the country needs at the moment. The energy that says, that though our tribes and tongues and faiths leave us in brotherhood, we stand”.
In his sermon, the Archbishop of Special Duties, Methodist Church Nigeria, Most Rev. Sunday Onuoha, raised the alarm over recent kidnappings and insecurity in the country.
Onuoha warned that Nigeria must seek urgent help before the situation deteriorates further.
The clergyman lamented that the nation borrows money and technology needed for survival, adding that it’s time to seek help from foreign countries to also tackle insecurity.
Onuoha said Nigeria should not continue, “Pretending that all is well”, when citizens are being abducted and vulnerable groups attacked across communities.
According to him, “Nigeria is facing a serious security crisis. Wherever we come from, it is time to stand up and say: enough.”
The cleric warned that denial is worsening the national condition, stressing that people must stop “saying peace when there is no peace”.
Onuoha, who served under former President Olusegun Obasanjo as Special Assistant on Privatization Matters, said, “Our young people are being taken; our women are assaulted. When we lack the skills to fix what is wrong, someone who can do it must step forward. If there is anyone who can help, please come and help us.”
He said government officials often struggled to speak openly because of diplomatic constraints, adding that citizens must therefore take responsibility for speaking the truth.
“On behalf of the government, the church, and every ordinary worker, let help come immediately — not tomorrow. Now. Right now,” he appealed.
The archbishop also warned that unresolved violence would shape the next generation, insisting that healing would only come when Nigerians rise above ethnic, religious, and class divisions.
He noted that hunger, sickness, sunshine, and rainfall had no tribe or religion, stressing that “we are one family under God”.
Onuoha said national progress had been crippled by selfishness and deceit, adding that, “righteousness exalts a nation, but wrongdoing breaks it”.
He urged Nigerians to confront the truth, discard bitterness, and embrace a fresh start.
“When our national teams are playing football, no one cares about the tribe. When you board an aircraft, you don’t ask the pilot’s religion. Safety is always on the mind of everyone,” he said.
Onuoha reminded leaders that power was temporary, warning against pride and arrogance.
“Look at our nation today: when people enjoy power, they become unreachable. But when power leaves, they become ordinary again. Even phones that once rang nonstop suddenly stop ringing,” he said.
He emphasised that God had not abandoned Nigeria, but was calling the country to repentance, justice, and unity.
“Something is wrong. Something is not right. As a country, we are hiding wounds instead of healing them,” he added.
The archbishop urged the nation to stop pretending and begin rebuilding with truth and accountability at the centre.
He advised all to embrace peace and unity at all times and be our brother’s keeper, no matter the religion.
Onuoha said, “I have been to every corner of this country. I have travelled, I have been to villages, I have been to homes, I have seen people afflicted. And as I move around, I have not seen somebody who, when he is crying, the tear that comes out of his eyes has a religion on it or has a tribe in it. And as soon as we understand the fact that people suffer as human beings, we can work together. The people causing our problem may be less than 0.2 percent.
“And we have over 230 million people, men of goodwill and conscience, who come together and work together in collaboration with people who are suffering as human beings. I want support. I also believe that even in some communities where people are persecuted, they are convinced that they know who their enemies are. And they need help. And all of us should rise together and provide that help.
“Definitely. We need help. If somebody thinks we don’t need help, that person is in denial. And maybe the person who thinks we don’t need help may be a suspect. So, we need help. And wherever that help comes from, we should go for it. We borrow money. The money we borrow is not ours. We go out to seek help for other things. Why can’t we seek help in security? We need it.
“That’s what I have been saying. If you rise and I rise, all of us rise; Nigeria will be great. Let us not demonize somebody next to you. Let us not demonize people of other faiths. Let us treat what is happening to us as one and that we are in trouble, all of us. Christians, Muslims, and even people who don’t believe in God, we are in trouble. We have enemies around us. Until we come together, we are wasting our time.
“Let’s forget about this blame game. How many people were killed? The people killed belong to which community? It is human blood that we are losing. As a church, there is a special need for peace”.
Former Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, said the present situation in the country needs urgent attention from all.
Okorocha said Nigeria needs peace and unity.
He applauded Archbishop Onuoha for his good works in the church and for humanity.
Former Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, expressed hope that Nigeria will surmount the present challenges and that God is in control.
