Lagos to register places of worship ‘to ensure sanity’

The Lagos State Government says plans are on to register religious houses in order to ensure sanity in the state.

The Commissioner, Lagos State Ministry of Home Affairs, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, made this known on Tuesday in Alausa,  during a stakeholders meeting with the Nigeria Inter-religious Council.

Akinbile-Yussuf said the registration, which was supposed to commence by mid 2020, would help to identify worship centres that are being used to perpetrate illegalities in the state.

She said that having a database of all religious bodies in the state would enable ease of reference, as well as ensuring effective communication.

“We need to know our number; then we can know what we need, we can know where we belong, we can know what we are doing.

“So, we are coming up with the registration forms and we need your cooperation as religious bodies that represent us at the local government level.

“We will ensure that we have it on a platform that will be automated, then you can do it anywhere, it is not compulsory that you come to Alausa for the registration,” the commissioner said.

She said that once the platform is ready, religious bodies would be trained on how to use it for registration and at no cost.

Akinbile-Yussuf said that the purpose was to have easy access to churches and mosques in order for them to benefit from government programmes.

She said the Ministry of Home Affairs would collaborate with the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources through the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency to eradicate noise pollution emanating from places of worship throughout the state.

She said that Lagos could only be a 21st Century economy if there is good environment devoid of noise pollution.

“We want to charge NIREC officials to ensure that they promote good environment by addressing all complaints by communities over noise pollution,” she said.

Akinbile-Yussuf also charged religious bodies to continue to ensure peaceful co-existence, as well as eschew violence and acts that could lead to wanton destruction of lives and property.

According to her, religious bodies should help government in community policing by monitoring, preaching, lecturing and praying against criminal acts in the state.

She said that the ministry would embark on training and retraining of religious leaders, in order to ensure development and inclusive governance in the state.

(NAN)