Celebrating Father Ehusani on Father’s Day, By Majeed Dahiru

When Reverend Father George Ehusani called me up to get some of our media cohorts to put out opinions and editorials in commemoration of this year’s Father’s Day, little did he know he was providing inspiration for my own contribution to the significance of fatherhood in raising a morally upright family. World over, 16 June is a day set aside to commemorate fatherhood, paternal bond and the influence of fathers in the society. According to Fr George, part of the problem of our society is the dysfunction of its most basic unit of the family arising from irresponsible parenting by its head (father).

In the words of Father G, as we fondly call him, ‘’being a father goes beyond a man’s ability to procreate children to his capability to nurture them into responsible members of the society through his emotional, spiritual, moral and material provision,” as the prevalent culture of irresponsible fatherhood has exacerbated the general problem of irresponsible citizenry in our dear Nigeria. And there is no better day than Father’s Day for the media to help raise awareness about the need for proper parenting through responsible fatherhood in our beloved country.

The truism that being a father goes beyond a man’s ability to procreate is most evident in the life of Father George Ehusani, an intellectual priest of the Holy Roman Catholic Church and the executive director of Lux Terra Leadership Foundation; an organisation I have had the privilege of working with for many years. Working closely with Fr George on the many projects embarked upon by his Foundation gave me a rare insight into his vision for humanity of a world that is made better by fraternal love, understanding, accommodation and peaceful coexistence under an atmosphere of freedom, justice, inclusion, equity and fairness. In Father George, my belief in the fact that the purpose of faith is the betterment of humanity is reinforced and that any faith that is devoid of humanism is not of God.

Whilst, Father George is famous for his fiery sermons on social justice, good governance and most recently his earth shaking intervention on the need for the government of Nigeria to pay a living wage to its long suffering people, not many know that his social crusades stems in part from his desire to bring succour and shared prosperity to many struggling families in Nigeria. In a Christlike manner, Father George is only but a shepherd watching out for security and welfare of his flock, using his sermons as a guide towards the righteous direction. And beyond the use of his sermon to preach publicly against vice, while admonishing righteousness in high places, Father George is also practicing what he preaches in private.

Whereas, his oath of celibacy prevents him from activities that could result into procreating children of his own in the over four decades he has been a priest, Father George has become the father of many children. And like the father that Christ Jesus was of the multitude he fed, healed and saved from eternal damnation, Father George has been for the emotional, spiritual, moral and material needs of all that are blessed enough to have their crossed with his. Beginning with those of us who are staff members of Lux Terra Leadership Foundation to members of the various parishes he has conducted priestly duties in, to members of the surrounding community, Father George has been a father in words and deeds.