The National Inter-Faith and Religious Organisations for Peace (NIFROP) has identified fervent prayer and fasting as the tool to tackling the menace of banditry, kidnapping and other crises bedeviling Nigeria.

The group, while revealing this at a press conference at the weekend in Abuja, warned messengers of God against the propagation of ethnic rife and hate sermons as the promotion of such boosts activities of killers in the name of politics or religion.

Calling on clergymen and women for intense spiritual support towards rendering the evil of kidnapping, ethnic killings and banditry illegal, the group, through one of its leaders, Bishop Prince Jacob Madaki, pledged their support for security agencies, Nigerian Tribune reports.

Madaki’s speech in part read, “Shalom to all brethren in the Name of our Gracious Lord! We have just finished the festivities and celebration of Easter, a prime season in the lives of Christendom all over the world. It reminds us of the death and resurrection of our Lord and personal savior, Jesus Christ, who suffered and was crucified for our sinful souls in order to bestow on us eternal life.

“Time has come and is precisely ripe for us to prove to God that His grace has not abandoned us. We do not intend to insult the sensibilities of the followers of any faith, but we have every reason now to believe God’s grace and His special blessings have departed from us. That’s why the land is in turmoil.

“May we seize this opportunity to warn the clergy or messengers of God who covertly or overtly promote ethnic rife or propagate hate sermons to bolster the activities of killers in the name of politics or religion. These acts are not of God and failure to desist, means, they will be randomly exposed and disgraced by Almighty God in no distant time.

“Finally, we appeal to all Nigerians to go down on their knees in ceaseless fasting and prayers for God to rescue Nigeria from bloodsucking vermin. And it is a clarion call to every genuine religious leader irrespective of denomination or creed to pray for Nigeria and also, urge their congregation to do so.

“It is their responsibility to give the government a guide to lead the nation to peace and prosperity, not violence, killings and destruction or hate sermons on the pulpit, laced in outward piousness.” He noted.