Story number 1 for 17 Apr 2003

(Nigeria) — We begin today in Nigeria where tensions are mounting ahead of Nigeria’s high-stakes presidential poll next weekend. The poll puts a Christian, President Olusegun Obasanjo against a Muslim, Muhammadu Buhari. Voice of the Martyrs’ Todd Nettleton says they’re concerned. “We have seen violent attacks by Muslims against Christians in the northern states of Nigeria. We have seen the government move toward Sharia law in some of those northern states. So, it’s very much a concern to think about a Muslim president of the whole country and what that would mean to the Christians there in Nigeria.” Nettleton says VOM is collecting used Christian books to help with discipleship, as the Gospel is spreading in Nigeria. “The church in Nigeria is growing in some of the areas that have moved toward Sharia law. The Christians there, they have been forced to really evaluate their faith and many have drawn closer to Christ and the church has grown.”