Once a shepherd is taken to the North, he's forgotten, says Ibukun Akinyoyenu in an open letter to leaders of the Church. The letter with the title “What Shepherds face in North”, exposed the challenges of clergies serving in the Northern part of Nigeria.

The letter which serves as an appeal, called for a special status for clergies in the north of Nigeria because “these people are seriously having tough time here and our leaders don't even care, yet they still expect them to pay 2/3 (two- third) every month, if not they won't have record. Is that fair? Someone that has not feed himself and family, how do you expect such a person to pay 2/3 (two-third) every month!?”


Ibukun expressed that the a sum of N5,000 as monthly salary for a clergy with a wife and four children is agonizing, as the insecurity due to tribal and religious crisis is a big challenge to these clergies yet they serve God and the Church diligently.






“But these shepherds are still here with their families, they never left! Some of them find it difficult to feed their family! Some don't even sleep in their homes because they are scared not to be killed by this evil and heartless people at night, so they have to run to a secured place and sleep on a bare ground and mosquito bites too. All these and more, and our elders are not doing anything about this, and am very sure they watch and listen to News everyday,” she wrote.

Ibukun also spoke about the abandoning of the clergies in the north at their duty post; “Once a shepherd is taken to the north, he's forgotten. Some shepherds have spent twelve years or more than that here in the north and according to the law if I may say, four years is maximum right?”







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