Christians are living “under bondage” in northern Nigeria, according to Archbishop Matthew Manoso Ndagoso of Kaduna, located in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, where the predominantly Muslim north meets the predominantly Christian south.
Kaduna State has imposed limited Sharia law in areas with a Muslim majority.
Ndagoso said it is increasingly difficult to build Churches or other Christian infrastructure in northern states like Kano, Sokoto, Katsina, and Zamfara during a March 8 webinar sponsored by Aid to the Church in Need.
“For over 60 years, no single certificate of occupancy has been given officially to any Christian community to build a Church, except in the early 90s when one governor who was a Catholic – a military governor – gave a certificate of occupancy. So, in this part of our country, Christians aren’t free to practice their faith as the Constitution demands, because if I am not free to build a church, if I am not free to get land, you cannot tell me that I am free,” the archbishop said.
“The Christian community in the area has been living under bondage especially in regard to their capacity to practice their faith,” he added.