Christmas, New Year: Alaafin preaches unity

The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111, has admonished Christians that Christmas should be a day filled with love, with appreciation of  what God has done for mankind, days of goodwill to one’s neighbours, and days of divine expectation from the Lord.
This, he stated, would transform our nation, heal our relationships, and give us the polity of our dreams.
‘’If we love with the spirit of Christmas in our hearts, governance
would work, electoral reforms would be easier to accomplish, funds
would be judiciously utilized for the good of the larger number, the
leadership would love and cherish the led. That is the essence of
Christmas, which we commend to all Nigerians, indeed, to all humanity,
at this time’’.
Oba Adeyemi gave the admonition in his New Year message  made available by his Director of Media and Publicity,  Bode  Durojaiye.
According to the royal father, ’’it was love that took Jesus to the
cross. If his heart was not willing and overflowing with love, he could not have offered Himself as a sacrifice. At this time in our country, we commend this love to all citizens. Love that considers
others first, love that prefers others above personal and selfish
desires, love that seeks to emancipate, to unshackle and liberate.
‘’Love, sincerity of purpose, sense of commitment and patriotism will
take us above internecine killings, agitations, and other divisive
tendencies. Let every Christian imbibe all these, and let them inspire
non-Christians with their genuine display of the attribute’’.
Alaafin further asserted that positive development in good governance
and accountability being witnessed presently in Nigeria is serving as
a beacon of hope for the citizenry, in spite of subterranean moves by
some saboteurs to discredit  President Muhammadu Buhari-led
administration.
‘’Until recently, lack of transparency, probity, and accountability in
Nigeria translates into a pandemic, thus led to absence of effective
Nigerian leadership. President Buhari’s victory which was a victory of
hope and transformation will translate into the beginning of a new
dawn for a new democracy in which wanton corruption, abuse of power,
lack of transparency in governance, deceit of the citizenry,
ineptitude, ethnicity and impunity were orders of the day.’’
The paramount ruler posited that changing a Government under which the
mass of ordinary people were unnecessarily and needlessly burdened
over the years under the yoke of massive and pervasive corruption,
deliberate oligarchic mismanagement of abundant natural resources,
party political, ethnic cronyism and abject ineptitude.
‘’The track record of the President  Buhari and his unassailable
commitment to democratic processes since Constitutional governance in
Nigeria in1999 gives hope that under his leadership, Nigeria will once
more instill the values of good, and accountable governance not only
in the country.’’
While praying Allah to guide and guard President Buhari and the people
of the country in the difficult but must-do task of honesty and
accountable governance , Oba Adeyemi was of the conviction that the integrity and honesty as well as a never-give up attitude of the President to a positive cause would prevail throughout his term.