Connect with us

News

Plateau Youth, Influencers Champion Peace at Interfaith Dialogue

editor

Published

on

Youth CARE Interfaith Peace Dialogue4

Jos, Plateau State – Young people, influencers, and community leaders gathered on Friday, 29th August, for “Beyond the Divide: Plateau Echoes for Unity”, a dialogue convened by Search for Common Ground under the Youth Collective Action for Religious Engagement (Youth CARE) Project. The program aimed at bridging faith divides both online and offline while strengthening interfaith harmony.

Speaking at the event, Kaura Joshua, Project Officer of Youth CARE, underscored the importance of broadening perspectives on religion. “There are over 4,200 religions in the world, yet many only know of Christianity and Islam. The more we understand this, the more we can respect diversity and embrace peace,” he said.

Blessing Dodo, Team Lead for Plateau Micro-influencers, warned that misinformation and biased content often fuel division online, stressing the need for fact-checking before sharing. She said the dialogue was meant to strengthen respect, tolerance, and responsible engagement both on social media and in communities.

In a keynote address on “Unity as Everyday Practice”, Kenneth Dakop, Team Lead on Strategic Communication at the Plateau State Peace Building Agency, urged youths to treat unity as a daily practice. He cautioned against messages of religious superiority. He called for conflict-sensitivity training for religious leaders and urged youths to use education, empowerment, and commerce as practical tools for building peace. stressing that “peace requires respect for all faiths, including African traditional religions. Freedom of religion must go hand in hand with tolerance and responsibility,” he added. 

Also speaking, Godwin Okoko, Head of Programme Implementation at Search for Common Ground, reminded participants that while religion is often used to mask conflict, the real drivers are ethnicity, land, and history. He challenged youths to use their voices to promote unity instead of division.

The panel session featured Salis Mohammad Abdulsalam, Stephen Zuma Jang, Ada Ohaba, and Hamza Yakubu, who shared experiences on fostering tolerance and peaceful coexistence through social media and grassroots engagement.

Participants committed to taking the message back to their communities. Assumpta Chidera emphasized showing love rather than mere tolerance, while Ibrahim Aliyu Ibni-Salihu said peace is essential for development. Others, including Nentok Israel Mallah and Maryam Ibrahim, pledged to practice and promote interfaith understanding in their daily lives.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

News

2027: We dumped Peter Obi for Tinubu – Charismatic Bishops

info

Published

on

By

Peter Obi and Tinubu.jpg

The Charismatic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, under the leadership of Leonard Kawas, has explained why its group of clerics switched support from the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Kawas, in an interview with Channels Television, said he supported Obi against Tinubu in 2023.

According to the cleric, he and his group believe President Tinubu is on the right track, which is why they decided to back his re-election bid.

“Well, in 2023, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was contesting against Peter Obi, but I chose Peter Obi. If it was for convenience, I would have chosen Tinubu, but I did not in 2023. It is my fundamental human right. Based on the issues on the ground and the leading of the Spirit, I and my group are supporting President Tinubu for 2027 because we believe he is on the right course. He will definitely take Nigeria to very high heights in all ramifications,” he said.

Recommended

DAILY POST reports that the Charismatic Bishops became a subject of political discussion following their endorsement of President Tinubu.

This comes as Tinubu, Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, and other presidential candidates are set to battle in the January 16, 2027, presidential election.

Continue Reading

News

Army warns of possible attacks on churches, schools

info

Published

on

By

Militaryarmy .jpg

The Nigerian Army has warned that terrorist groups, including the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), may be planning coordinated attacks on churches, schools, NYSC orientation camps and other vulnerable public places across Nigeria.

The warning was contained in a communication dated September 9, 2026, signed by AM Sodiq and addressed to the General Officer Commanding, 2 Division, Nigerian Army, Adekunle Fajuyi Cantonment, Ibadan. SaharaReporters obtained the document.

According to the Army, intelligence indicates “increasing mobilisation of resources and foot-soldiers” by terrorist groups for possible attacks in parts of the North-East, North-West, North-Central and some areas of the South-West.

It warned that the attacks could happen “any moment from now” and identified Catholic and Protestant churches, primary and secondary schools, NYSC orientation camps and other vulnerable locations as possible targets.

Recommended

The Army also said it had received information about the movement of scores of armed fighters from Katsina through Kaduna towards Plateau State.

The military further disclosed that suspected ISWAP members had started monitoring some of the identified targets, allegedly with the help of local collaborators.

“Further intelligence revealed that suspected members of Islamic States West African Province (ISWAP) have commenced surveillance and reconnaissance activities against identified targets with support from their local collaborators,” the document stated.

The Army expressed particular concern about schools ahead of the resumption of the 2026/2027 academic session.

It said the terrorists could be planning to exploit the return of large numbers of students and teachers to cause mass casualties and create fear.

“Of particular concern is the targeting of educational institutions, with the anticipated period of the attack assessed to coincide with the resumption of schools for the 2026/2027 academic session,” the document stated.

It added that the timing was “intended to exploit concentration of students and staff to cause mass casualties and heighten public fear and insecurity ahead of the 2027 general elections.”

The Army said the intelligence suggested that the groups may have moved beyond planning and could already be preparing for the attacks.

“This development suggests possible progression from intent to preparatory activity and therefore warrants heightened vigilance around identified locations and similarly exposed facilities,” it said.

The military consequently called for increased surveillance and stronger security measures around the identified targets and other public places considered vulnerable.

Continue Reading

Trending