Being excerpt of the text of a paper presented by Chief Ebenezer Babatope, OFR, at a symposium to mark the 35th anniversary of the creation of the Methodist Church Diocese of Ifaki held at Ifaki-Ekiti.

I want to congratulate the entire members of the Methodist Church Nigeria, Ifaki­Ekiti Diocese on the celebration of the thirty-fifth year of its creation. I equally want to thank the Organizing Committee of the celebration for inviting me to participate in this symposium.

This to me is a call to return to my base. I accepted to come and 'deliver this paper because as the English people would say "a river that denies its source will eventually dry up." I was born in Ifaki by itinerant parents,Reverend and Mrs. Babatope who were of the Methodist extraction. I completed my primary education here in Ifaki and by the grace of God I was one of the members of the first set of Ifaki Grammar School when it started in 1 957.

Ifaki means a lot to me and the entire Babatope Family. We say it loudly and clearly that throughout the entire twenty-five years that my father spent here, not a single member of the family ever reported sick.

The travails my parents suffered subsequently in their journeys through life began after my father was transferred out of Ifaki circuit of the Methodist Church. These travails eventually led to the death of my mother in 1969 at a tender age of 53. All my childhood friends came from Ifaki. Ifaki contributed a lot to whatever God has made of my life till the present day.

I have attempted to do some simplifications on the subject of this paper to see how we can make it more meaningful to participants in this ceremony.

I have equated the roles of the church with the roles of Christians in politics generally. In year 2005, I had delivered a paper titled "THE ROLES OF CHRISTIANS IN POLITICS" at a seminar held under the auspices of the Methodist Diocese of Lagos Mainland. The content of my address at that seminar is as relevant today particularly with the theme of "THE CHURCH AND DEMOCRATISATION" that we are examining today. I have drawn substantial materials from that paper of 2005.

Democratisation can not be differentiated from the politics we play here and in other parts of the free world. Elementary definition of democracy contains the following - "Democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people." It can then be surmised that the CHURCH and DEMOCRATISATION could equally in a wider sense be interpreted as CHRISTIANS AND POLITICS. Democratisation involves the freedom guaranteed 'in the exercise by the PEOPLE in creating a system of government that is made by the PEOPLE and for the PEOPLE and by the PEOPLE.

Perhaps it is important to even ask, why do we believe that the CHURCH particularly Christians must have definitive roles to play in the democratisation process in Nigeria?

When we talk of the Church therefore, we are talking of an institution that produces men and women who are expected to lead society in a manner that conforms with the basic tenets of decent morality preached inside the Holy Bible that articulates the Christian creed and beliefs.

Nigeria's history since 1966 January 15 has been based largely on the influences the Nigerian Armed Forces have had on Nigerian society. January 15, 1966 was the day the soldiers went to town by overthrowing the democratic government in Nigeria that had been installed in Nigeria after the December 1 959 Federal elections and that had led the country to her independence on 1st October, 1960.

Militarism is never about freedom for the people that are associated with Democratic Civil regimes. A military coup is organised by soldiers from the barracks and it brings about a government that is associated with force and coercion. The first thing military coupists do is to suspend the constitution which contains the body of laws governing how a people and a nation should be governed. When the rights of the people become discarded and thrown away as we find in the situations surrounding the announcement of military coups, of course force, anarchy and violence become the order of the day.

While not trying to say that the military years in power in Nigeria were wasted years, we can however not say that those years were not years that will easily be forgotten in the history of Nigeria. We were treated to violent and non violent coups and counter coups during those years leading to the deaths of many innocent Nigerians and we were governed by men and women whose allegiance was to the guns they hold and not to instrumentalities of state power expressed and written by people who believe that the PEOPLE and the PEOPLE alone are the PRIME and MOTIVE force of history. Democracy is about freedom and democratisation is the process through which such freedoms are expressed in a state where the interests of the PEOPLE are paramount in the minds of all those who live in such free societies.

Nigeria is today faced with many problems that stretch the limits of human endurance of the citizens-that reside inside her.

These problems equally crate a big challenge to Christians and Muslims who believe that Nigeria deseNes a country that is governed by FAITH hence by God.

What are these problems? They include:-.Corruption in high places; religious intolerance leading to the. burning of churches, and mosques at will by some fundamentalist religious groups. The current experiences of Nigerians in the hands of the Boko Haram sect is a pointer in this regard.

Lack of fear of God in which elections are perverted to make for the rule of minority over the majqrity. We however thank God that th~ INEC fair organization of the April 2011 elections have gone to a great extent to assure Nigerians that their votE1s under our democratic government really count.

We can however reasonably say that until the April 2011 elections, elections in Nigeria since 1960 have been generally manipulated to produce minority governments that. are not sanctioned by the supreme and free will of the PEOPLE.

Above all, we have the problem of guaranteeing STABILITY of the country i.e. STABILITY of the nation that is free from unnecessary incursions into government by forces (military or non .military) opposed to the survival of DEMOCRACY in Nigeria. Does the Church therefore have a role in making Nigeria overcome these problems thereby contributing most effectively to the stabilization of the democratic process in Nigeria? I say a firm yes. The church is a powerful institution. . .

One day, the Christian churches at Ifaki under the leadership of the Methodist Church decided to have an open air service of prayers to God to help bring the rains. The open air service of all the Christian denominations in Ifaki took place at the famous Agbaludi Square near to the Central Market. Spirited prayers were offered to God' appealing to the Supreme Being to send down the rains ar)d to save the people from what could have been a devastating economic problem. This was in 1955.

I will never forget that less than two hours after the open air service, our God opened the skies and rain started to fall to the amazement of all. The event was an open manifestation that God is always there to hearken to the prayers of HIS people when they sincerely and openly ask for His assistance.

Fellow countrymen and women, if our Living God could do the above for the Ifaki people in 1955, HE can do it to save our dear country from the problems created by our fellow mortals to make governance impossible in Nigeria.

I am delighted to note that by the title of the paper chosen for this Symposium, focus has shifted from the past question of "Should Christians take part in Politics? To "the role of Christians in Politics?

Nigerians have gone pass the era in which the affairs of state are left almost entirely in the hands of those who do not sh'are the' Christian ideals.

Indeed, the Christians as citizens do have roles to play in the politics of their land.

The pertinent question is, what kind of role should the Christian play? An ancient American author writing on the politics of. his day, in utter frustration asked "What kind of men should run for political office"? In his despondency he surmised an answer - "It should not be the bold and violent, men indefatigable in their selfish purs,uit of posts of honour, places of profit and prestige". This is the challenge before the church of God The people of God, may in this gathering of avowed Methodists be concerned about the future of Nigeria.

Mariano DiGangi, Professor of pastoral studies at Ontario Theological Seminary, Canada, in her book on the Minor prophets - Twelve Prophetic Voices - opined that the prophets spoke out on their particular circumstances and in their individual styles of the necessity for integrity, equity, morality in day to day relationships, in the politics of their days, but were filled with the vibrc:mt voice of the Living God viz:­

Nathan criticized the unjust society; pleaded for a strictly theo-centric society; focused on ultimate issues in the society; confronted the dangerous state of moral paralysis which accepted as normal conditions that demanded drastic changes.

He confronted King David, challenging his abuse of power and requested King Jehoiakim to change his priorities for "to know God is to do justice"

From the above, we can deduce that the prophets of Old Testament times were men who were enabled by inspired insights, courage and speech to deliver the message from God about politics as well as religion, and about economic and social, as well as personal ethics.

People of God, this is the background from which Christians have come. Whether in politics or in other spheres of life, there are limiting factors guiding our actions and perspectives within which we shall be judged and below which our performance will be deemed unacceptable.

The next pertinent question is, is there justice for all in our land? Are Christian participants in politics not succumbing to the dogma, "if you cannot beat them join them?" If the political mafia has always constituted itself into a sorority of interests, how is Jesus command in Matthew 5: 15-16 playing out. 'let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven". Don't hide your light. Let it shine for all, let your good deeds glow for all to see, so that they will praise your heavenly father. (The Living Bible Translation).

The issues the Methodists Church Nigeria Ifaki Ekiti Diocese is focusing on in this Symposium have bogged some other persons on the other side of the world. Human needs are basic and universal.

A Chinese sage, Lee Kuan Yoo once wrote:­ "We cannot afford to forget that public order, personal security, economic and social progress, and prosperity are not the natural order of things, (but) that they depend on ceaseless effort and attention from an honest and effective government that the people must elect".

My submission before this august assembly is, that as bona fide citizens, there is a definite role to play for the frontline politician, for the general run-of-the-mill electorate, as well as for the masses of our people.