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— Vote on integrity, not on religion, ethnicity

By Dayo Johnson, Akure

The President of the Unification of C&S Churches in Ondo State and the founder, of Success Gate Christ’s Church International, Primate Dr Ade Ademisokun-Turton, weekend, warned politicians and voters against buying and selling their votes during the 2023 election, to avoid the wrath of God.

Ademisokun-Turton, gave the warning in Akure, the state capital, during the inauguration of a new executive of the C&S  in the state.

He warned Christians and the Churches against the commercialisation of their votes during the elections, to avoid mortgaging their future.

The clergyman urged them to be committed to promoting truth and upholding integrity for God to have mercy on the country.

According to him, the church has a major role to play ahead of the forthcoming general elections.

He urged Nigerians to pray for the peace of Nigeria and God’s direction for all its leaders.

 Ademisokun-Turton said ” as a church, our main responsibility is to shun any decay in the system, the purpose of the salt is to arrest decay and Christians are like salt therefore our goal is to arrest any form of decay”

” The church and other religious leaders have roles to play in the election prominent among which is the enlightenment of the electorate and the citizenry.

“The three frontline parties now have candidates we are suspicious of them all.

“So, we need to enlighten our members and followers about the implications of vote-buying or selling their votes or abandoning their vote. The implications of saying let me just vote, it doesn’t matter or refusing to vote at all.

“We need to let those buying votes know the implications that they will suffer for too long and their children may be a party to that kind of continuous suffering. So, we are not going to keep quiet. We need to let them know that.

“We will also let them know that civic responsibility is very biblical. Not only that, we need to let them know that if they want to vote, they have to vote on purpose. Not along ethnic, religious or tribe. So, let us vote on integrity”

He however assured Nigerians that “God will soon walk through Nigeria to put the nation on a new path of growth and development.

Speaking on the unification of C&S in the state, he said “We’ll hit the ground running reconciliation all Cherubim and Seraphim churches. You know C&S seems larger in Ondo state, it’s almost a state church. We have to bring everybody on board. That’s our first assignment.

He added that that’s our right of place because we know C&S is the first Pentecostal church in Nigeria. So, our right of place which had been hitherto abandoned, neglected or overlooked or disrespected, we have to bring back the old glory.”