Foreign News
Pope Francis Meets Nigerian Pilgrims in Rome, Prays for Country
By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
Pope Francis has granted audience to the Nigerian Pilgrims during the 2022 special pilgrimage to Rome organized by the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission, NCPC.
The Nigerian Pilgrims were led to the papal audience at the Vatican City by his Grace, Most Rev.
Ignatius Kaigama, among other high profile personalities.A statement by Celestine Toruka NCPC Deputy Director/Head Media & Public Relations in Abuja said the Pontiff received the Nigerian flag from the Nigerian pilgrims and prayed for peace and progress of Nigeria.
He also prayed for those who lost their lives in the flood incident in Nigeria.
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission Rev. Dr. Yakuba Pam described the audience with the pope as spiritually fulfilling, and Commended the good conduct of the pilgrims during the special pilgrimage to Rome in spite of the fact that there were some inadequacies, coupled with the fact the pilgrims were not able to visit Israel due to operational reasons.
However, the NCPC Boss assured the pilgrims especially the self-sponsored ones that the Commission would come up with a mechanism to accommodate them in the next pilgrimage exercise.
The President of the Baptist Convention, Rev. Dr. Israel Akanji who was one of the Pilgrims who met the Pope during the Papal audience stated that the visit was awesome and would have a special effect on Nigeria and her people. According to him “the fact that the Pope prayed for Nigeria and her people signifies a new beginning for the country”.
In the same vein, the general Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Barr Joseph Daramola also affirmed that the Papal audience was the best thing that help the pilgrims.
He was specifically happy that he personally handed over the Nigerian flag to Pope Francis. His words, “I will never forget this experience in my life”. He further stated, “ I thank the NCPC for providing this veritable platform to be in the presence of his Holiness”, he said.
The Special Adviser to the Governor of Lagos State on Religion,(Christian) very Rev. Bukola Adeleke explained that the number of Holy sites visited during the special pilgrimage to Rome was worth the salt. He said that the pilgrims visited the St. John Basilica, the Basilica of Mary as well as St. Peters Basilica all in Vatican among other important Holy sites visited.
He commended the efforts of NCPC in putting this special pilgrimage together while hoping that future special pilgrimage to Rome should be improved upon by the Commission.
In his assessment of the 2022 Special Pilgrimage to Rome, the Executive Secretary of the Enugu State Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, Barrister Nestor Ezeme spoke on the Papal visit which he said was his first time ever to personally meet with his Holiness. He said he could not contain himself for joy for such a privilege of a life time.
He said he would encourage his other colleagues in other states to see the need to embark on a Special Pilgrimage to Rome with their pilgrims considering its attendant blessings.
On the quality of hotels where the pilgrims were accommodated, he lauded the NCPC for providing descent accommodation for the pilgrims.
He particularly thanked the NCPC Boss for making sure that the special Pilgrimage to Rome was a reality in spite of all odds.
About 112 pilgrims participated in the NCPC 2022 special pilgrimage to Rome, made up of self sponsored pilgrims, Lagos and Enugu Pilgrims as well as some high profile personalities which include both the Deputy Governor of Enugu and Nasarawa State as well as some first class traditional rulers.
A palliative care nurse in Germany has been sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of the murder of 10 patients and the attempted murder of 27 others.
Prosecutors alleged that the man, who has not been publicly named, injected his mostly elderly patients with painkillers or sedatives in an effort to ease his workload during shifts overnight.
The offences were committed between December 2023 and May 2024 in a hospital in Wuerselen, in western Germany.
Investigators are reported to be looking into several other suspicious cases during his career.
The unnamed man had been employed at the hospital in Wuerselen since 2020, after completing training as a nursing professional in 2007.
Prosecutors told a court in Aachen that he showed “irritation” and a lack of empathy to patients who required a higher level of care, and accused him of playing “master of life and death”.
The court was told that he injected patients with large doses of morphine and midazolam, a type of sedative, in an effort to reduce his workload during night shifts.
He was arrested in 2024.
When issuing the life sentence, the court said that the man’s crimes carried a “particular severity of guilt” which should bar him from early release after 15 years.
He will be able to appeal the verdict.
Prosecutors have said that exhumations are taking place to identify further potential victims, which could see the man put on trial again.
The case bears similarity to that of former nurse Niels Högel, who was handed a life sentence in 2019 after he was convicted of murdering 85 patients at two hospitals in northern Germany.
A court found that he administered lethal doses of heart medication to people in his care between 1999 and 2005.
He is believed to be the most prolific killer in Germany’s modern history.
Cameroon’s 92-year-old leader Paul Biya has been sworn in for another seven years as president in a ceremony at the country’s parliament in Yaoundé.
Biya won a controversial eighth term in a fiercely disputed election last month.
He has been in power for 43 years, and addressed only one campaign rally before the election.
The nonagenarian, the world’s oldest head of state, won 54% of the vote, compared to the 35% of Issa Tchiroma Bakary, according to the official results.
Tchiroma Bakary maintains he was the rightful winner of the poll and has accused the authorities of fraud, which they have denied.The announcement of the result led to major protests across the country.
From Dan Amasingha, Minna
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Niger State chapter has appealed to all the stakeholders in Niger State to ensure that November 1 local government polls are peaceful.Chairman of CAN in the state, Most Rev. Dr. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna called on residents to come out en masse to exercise their franchise during the local government council elections.
The State CAN Chairman advised that voter apathy is not a good sign for the process and urged residents to actively participate in the forthcoming Local Government Elections. Yohanna, who is also the Catholic Bishop of Kontagora Diocese in a statement in Minna urged eligible voters who have registered to go get their Permanent Voter’s Card from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC office.According to him; “the 2025 local government elections are around the corner, I want to appeal to those who are yet to collect their PVCs to quickly collect them to avoid unnecessary rush and to regret in the future.”He therefore called on all Christian faithfuls to participate actively in the electoral process adding that “it is your civic right.”In his words, the Chairman said: “I call on all residents to participate in the November, 1st Chairmanship and Councillorship elections.“Let it be known that we are the determinants of who leads us at the local and grassroots levels. As Christians, we must participate actively in politics either as members of political parties or as electorates.“To avoid voter apathy, let us come out and vote in the people of our choice into various offices”.He admonished political parties to feed candidates that can provide basic amenities and meet the yearnings of the people.According to him, there is a need for all Bloc leaders both at the State and LGA level, leaders/heads of churches to call on their members not to sit on the fence but to participate actively and to ignore statements like “Votes do not count”.While calling on security personnel to discharge their duties, he appealed to Nigerlites to conduct themselves peacefully during and after the elections and avoid any acts that will bring about break down of law and order in the state.Bishop Yohanna also called on the INEC to publish and announce PVCs collection centres to enable those who registered online to pick up their cards.
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