The Federal Government has declared December 26 and 27, 2022, and January 2, 2023, as public holidays to mark Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day celebrations respectively.
The Minister of Interior, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, while making the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government, felicitated with Christians and all Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora on this year’s Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Aregbesola urged Christians to follow Jesus Christ in deeds and his teachings, especially on faith, hope and love.
He stressed that the Christians should emulate the life of Jesus Christ, especially His teachings on humility, service, compassion, patience, peace and righteousness.
“We must have it at the back of our minds that peace and security are two critical conditions for economic development and prosperity,”
“Nigerians must make best use of this festive period to pray for the total eradication of any vestige of insecurity in our dear nation” he stated.
He averred that 2023 is an election and political transition year and Nigerians should prepare to make it a huge success by voting peacefully and avoiding anything capable of obstructing the exercise in any way.
Aregbesola assured Nigerians that the government had put in place competent measures for the security of lives and property and expects Nigerians to support the efforts of security agencies by providing useful information that will assist them in carrying out their duties.
The minister called on all Nigerians to be security conscious, asking them to report any suspicious persons or activities to the nearest security agency and through the N-Alert application on Android and IOS.
He admonished all citizens to remain focused and rest assured that the year 2023 would be a better year for everyone.
“We wish all Christians a merry Christmas and all Nigerians a peaceful and prosperous new year celebration ” he said.
