On Monday, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, the First Lady of Nigeria, cautioned religious leaders against cursing governments at all levels and instead to concentrate on praying and offering advice.

At the opening ceremony of the four-day African Biblical Leadership Initiative International Conference, which will take place in Abuja, the president’s wife issued the warning.

Value-based leadership model for Africa, the focus of the ABLI project, drew together a number of African and European leaders along with international Christian leaders.

In her speech, Tinubu bemoaned the various difficulties facing modern leadership, particularly in Africa. She was speaking on behalf of Princess Gloria Akobundu, the National Coordinator and CEO of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development.

Therefore, the First Lady called on religious leaders to teach nonviolence and emulate Christ by passionately praying for those in positions of authority rather than mistreating them.

“To our spiritual fathers, I implore you to pray for the government and to construct and foster peace and development,” she uttered. We shouldn’t denigrate, disparage, or criticise the administration. Speak the truth to our citizens’ consciences and leaders instead.

“Let us not put ourselves in God’s position or equate ourselves with Him, for we are well aware that God may use anybody to accomplish His goals and carry out His plan on earth. Africa is at a crossroads, needing strong leadership to overcome a multitude of obstacles.

“We must adopt a value-based leadership paradigm that embodies the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ as Christian leaders. The foundation of this paradigm has to be societal harmony, fairness, honesty, and wisdom.

Daniel Okoh, the president of the Christian Association of Nigeria, repeatedly emphasised the need of good leadership earlier in his remarks.

In addition, Okoh prayed that God would continue to produce ethical and kind leaders for the African nations.

“I want to emphasise that leadership is a calling to serve integrity and purpose, not just a position of authority,” he stated. The passage serves as a reminder that we should act and think in accordance with higher standards of truth. As citizens of a continent full of diversity and promise, we have a special chance to set an example and live by the moral standards set by our religion.

It is more important than ever to have leaders who uphold biblical principles in these trying times. We confront many difficulties, including unstable economies, social inequities, insecurity, and disputes that jeopardise our growth and togetherness.

Love and togetherness must be the foundation of our leadership. We must dedicate ourselves to the values found in the Torah, which are based on what is honourable and pure, while we work to improve our communities and countries.