The national leadership, zonal leaders, and sectional heads of Yahudim religion in Nigeria have resolved that the candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dr Sunday Onuoha would be the next Governor of Abia State in 2023.
The clerics with their supreme leader, Cohen Mosheh who is the President, the Supreme Council of Yahudim Affairs in Africa took the resolution in Nnewi, Anambra State when Dr Onuoha, a Methodist Bishop, honoured an invitation of the clerics after their earlier courtesy visit to his Lordship in July in Umuahia, Abia State.
The Yahudim leaders had in their earlier visit to Bishop Onuoha in Umuahia requested his assistance and introduction of the Yahudim religion into the interfaith commission in Nigeria with financial and moral support before the 2023 election.
They also requested him to include Abia Yahudim scholars in his campaign team for the upcoming election to give them a sense of belonging.
They resolved that a memorandum of understanding be signed between them and the Bishop with a view to building a Yahudim central synagogue for the worshippers, administrative blocks, and Levis quarters and to equip them.
The Yahudim leaders expected Bishop Onuoha as Governor to appoint their scholars in Abia State into his cabinet and create Yahudim pilgrim commission in the State.
“The Bishop has genuinely distinguished himself from the other leaders and politicians in Nigeria and has demonstrated great leadership capacity and competence. He has shown total commitment to valuing and showing regard for Yahudim.
“He has demonstrated a proof to carry Yahudim along in his leadership if on our own part we give him our total physical and spiritual support to become the next Governor of Abia State, ” the supreme leader said.
He explained that Yahudim religion comprised all denominations that worship on Saturdays, saying that the worshippers are over 40 million across Nigeria as at 2010 records. He disclosed that at the moment the population has risen to more than 50 million.
“We have been isolated for so long by the society and government itself by virtue of doing things on Sabbath days including elections and population census. We cannot allow ourselves to be Sabbath defiers.
“But in 2023, if there will be an election, I strongly believe that Yahudim will participate actively in voting. But know it that before now Yahudim never participated or associated with elections and their activities because they were always scheduled on Sabbath days, ” he said.
In his response, Bishop Onuoha told the Yahudim leaders that he was confident to clinch the governorship seat to succeed Governor Okezie Ikpazu.
Bishop Onuoha who is the President, Vision Africa International, and leader of Inter-Faith Commission in Nigeria said he was not worried about the preparations of the mega political parties, adding that the narrative had changed as the electorate would no longer vote for political parties but for individual candidates based on their antecedents.
“Nigerians have decided to vote for people. Nigerians are tired of political parties. Nigerians are going to show the world that the time has come to vote for people who they believe can lead them.
“Religious leaders will no longer shy away from politics and leadership of the people. We must get it right this time. We must no longer fold our hands to allow the mistakes to continue. The masses want religious leaders to take the bull by the horns in order to transform our society.
“We are going to attract investors. We will create job opportunities for the teeming youth population.
“We have a lot of programmes tailored for the benefit of our people. Days of empty election promises will be laid to rest. What I’m saying is what I will be doing. Days of self-centeredness must be over. Gone will be the days when politicians think about themselves first before looking at the masses who give them the mandate. We must terminate the era of personal aggrandizement. We are going there for the masses, ” the Bishop promised.
The host, His High Enact Martin Ozonnamalu said there was no discrimination in Yahudim religion. He noted that the Yahudim leaders discovered that Bishop Onuoha has all it takes to present good governance to his people of Abia State, adding that the Yahudim members in Abia and the Abia people generally had to do the needful in line with the saying that when the righteous is on the throne, the people rejoice.
The Yahudim leaders present at the meeting unanimously gave their nod for the Bishop to ride on.
