The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria(PFN) has been commended for upholding religious tolerance and offering various forms of assistance to the needy in Lagos State
Governor Akinwunmi Ambode made the commendation on Monday at the Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja, when he received the leadership of PFN, led on a courtesy visit by its President, Dr. Felix Omobude.
The Governor told the body that it was on record that in the last two and a half years of his administration, there had never been any major religious or ethnic crisis.
This is just as Governor Ambode equally urged them to sustain what he described as selfless service the body had been offering to humanity.
“I want to thank you on behalf of our administration. It has never been like this before; we have never had any disagreement between or among the religious groups or even among our people on a tribal note and that also shows that God is present in Lagos state.
“Religious leaders are significant in the development of the state and I can say it easily. There are too many things that even our policies do not cover and a strong part of the civil society is our religious bodies, you have always been there.
“There are so many things that the churches are doing that are beyond spiritual. There are churches that are feeding people; they are taking care of health of the people; they are taking care of maternal mortality issues, taking delivery of babies where there are no hospitals and thereby complementing the efforts of government. That in itself deserves to be commended and I must say a big thank you to all our religious bodies, said the Governor.”
He said as a sign of celebrating and appreciating the religious tolerance in the state, the state government would uphold and sustain the interfaith parley which started last year, saying this year’s edition will hold in the coming weeks.
Governor Ambode said the modest achievements of his administration were a product of the discipline learnt from religious fellowship, and assured that no stone would be left unturned to make life comfortable for residents.
Earlier, Reverend Omobude said they were at Lagos House to deepen the relationship existing with government and to identify with governor Ambode.
He said the PFN leadership is thrilled by what God had been using governor Ambode to do in the state, saying the massive infrastructural renewal and various policies were having a positive impact on the people.
He said the church must not only criticize government officials when they do wrong, but also commend them when they are working in the interest of the people, adding that of a truth, the giant strides of the state government deserved to be commended.
He also assured that PFN would continue to partner with government at various levels, especially on matters relating to development of the country.
