As Christians celebrate Easter, the Northern leaders under the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) have lamented that the 2025 Easter is being celebrated amidst daunting socioeconomic, political, and security challenges worsening in the country.

They complained of monstrous corruption, selfishness of leaders, nepotism, and provocative and ostentatious lifestyles of political leaders that are the bane of the nation’s growth.

ACF, in its Easter message, signed by the Forum’s National Publicity Secretary, Professor Tukur Muhammad-Baba, lamented that, communities in Benue, Borno, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Katsina, Kaduna, Niger, Plateau, Zamfara, and other states, are daily visited with debilitating and senseless deaths, destruction, dislocation, tears, and fractured intergroup relations.

“Adding to the tragedy are monstrous corruption, selfishness of leaders, nepotism, political insensitivity, inequities, impunity, lack of frugality, provocative and ostentatious lifestyles of political and other office holders, etc,” Muhammad-Baba said.

“Doubtless, living conditions are dire, particularly in the northern states and in Nigeria and general. The needed public policy responses to the problems have been grossly inadequate and far from being effective and satisfactory.

“Still, in the spirit of occasion, ACF calls on the Christian brethren to continue to pray for peace, security and economic recovery for Nigeria, for God’s intercession so that Nigeria’s leaders are re-endowed with faith, love for ordinary citizens and the wisdom to chart Nigeria to the path to righteousness and glory.

“ACF also prays for Almighty God to further re-energize the National Security agencies so that they crush the reigns of terror, criminality, and insecurity that non-state actors have been subjecting the people to and which seek to destabilise Arewa communities and the Nigeria at large; turn the hearts of the terror merchants and their sponsors away from their senseless and callous criminality. ACF also prays for the conditions which allow and embolden the evil terror merchants to be overcome.”