Message by the Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi on the occasion of the Easter celebration on Sunday, 8th April, 2012

1. BROADCAST BY THE EKITI STATE GOVERNOR,
DR. KAYODE FAYEMI ON THE OCCASION OF THE
EASTER CELEBRATION ON SUNDAY, 8TH APRIL, 2012
My Good People of Ekiti State
It is yet another celebration of the crucifixion, death and the resurrection
of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ which event occurred some two
thousand years ago. That event, according to Christian belief, reconciled
we mankind to God as the blameless son of God offered Himself as
atonement for the sins of man. His sacrifice on the Cross, which Christians
all over the world are celebrating today, is one of the sacred religious
festivals believed to have given us an unmitigated access to the loving
God.
As I felicitate with our Christian brothers and sisters, I wish to draw
attention to the underlining message of the Cross that must not be lost to
the accompanying festivities. The significance of the celebration to
mankind is multi-dimensional; and I urge you all to let this reflect in our
relationship with one another both Christians and the people of other
beliefs.
Good People of Ekiti State, the passion and death of Jesus underscores the
love of the Father who gave his son in love for us and the willingness of
the Son to sacrifice himself for others to be liberated from the weight and
shame of sin.

2. Having gone through the 40 days of fasting and praying, which in itself is a
period of cleansing and purification, no time is better than now to purge
ourselves of those weights that have impeded our progress as a people
over the years by demonstrating love in its fullness not only to one another
but also to our society. We are all familiar with the simple definition of sin
as the failure to do what we know is right. By extension, these are the
things that are unacceptable to our neighbours and the land. This is why
all of us must do everything to right the wrongs of the past and
demonstrate sustained commitment to move our state forward through
brotherly love and sacrifice.
There is no doubt that these are tough times in our country. Intolerance
continues to rear its head through sectarian violence. Yet rather than
succumb to the wishes of the evil doers and feel threatened about these
uncertain times, we must rise to the fact that these are trials that are
supposed to strengthen our resolve to confront our challenges.
It is painful that peace has been so elusive in our country just because
most of us have deviated from the pattern of living bequeathed to us on
the Cross. We continue to cheat with impunity while many display
pathologically insatiable craze for wealth at the expense of the larger
society. The challenge of Easter is for us as Christians to rethink the
reality of our faith. As Christians we must continue to uphold the principles
of our faith as it relates to honesty, justice, integrity, accountability,
compassion and the pursuit of the common good.

3. More importantly, good people of Ekiti State, the story of Easter is that of a
character of relief that comes after anguish, pains, trauma, deprivations
and sacrifices. Indeed before the joy that heralds the glorious morning of
Resurrection, there was terror and thick darkness that were strong enough
to swallow up the eventual joy of Easter. It is therefore necessary to
remind you there is always a glorious dawn after darkness, and without
the difficult challenges, the huge and insuppressible triumph of Easter
would have been a mirage. I am glad that this is the spirit that runs
through the veins of our forebears of which we have the enduring history
of unquenchable and unstoppable quest to achieve success in the midst of
hopelessness and despair. This has been our experience too. At every
point, we have always come out triumphant.
This shows a glaring synergy between what Easter stands for and the glory
that is ahead of our dear state, Ekiti, the Land of Honour.
I like to reiterate once again the commitment of our government to make
life better for all citizens and residents of Ekiti. This is our primary concern
as reflected in the quantum of projects being executed across the State
and the way we are committed to the welfare of our people. I am
confident that as Jesus rose, Ekiti will rise from the base to the top and our
covenant to make poverty history remains a sacred and sacrosanct
contract with our people and the land. This has been our guide in all our
policy directions.

4. I appeal to residents to continue to live together in peaceful co-existence
and harmony and to show love to one another. Let us all eschew bitterness
as our common progress lies in peaceful existence anchored on good
neighbourliness.
I wish you all a happy celebration. Thank you and God bless