International Human Rights Lawyer, Nigeria?s US-based Emmanuel Ogebe, has written a farewell letter to Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who retired this week. In the follow up to his original letters to the former Anglican Church Leader, Ogebe urged him to save Nigeria?s prisoner of conscience, Leah Sharibu, who is languishing in Boko Haram custody. Belwo is the text of the letter dated 8th January 2025:

I wish you all a happy new year!

CORRESPONDENCE WITH ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY

Your Grace

Former Archbishop of Canterbury

Justin Welby

Happy new year.

I understand that you have now stepped down from office after a historic tenure in which you served two temporal monarchs.

While I commend you for resigning despite the fact that some feel you didn?t overtly do anything requiring this drastic step, I must draw your attention to unfinished business.

Your Grace, I had raised with you previously the plight of persecuted Christians in northern Nigeria, the legacy progeny of much blood and sweat of British missionaries from over a century ago, which is now the deadliest place in the world for Christians. More Christians were killed in Nigeria than the rest of the world combined for 12 out of 13 years since the comparative data began being tracked.

However unlike your fellow House of Lords members, Lord David Alton or Baroness Carolyn Cox who spoke out consistently on behalf of martyrs and traveled numerous times to soothe the orphans, your voice was not assiduously lent to the heroes of faith in this generation.

On the contrary, you were used by the uber persecutor of Christians, under whom the U.S. designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari in his propaganda to twist the knife in the back of believers that the archbishop was his ?best friend? while they were being slaughtered.

Your relationship was premised on your oil exec past and not your ecclesiastical present and you did not prevail on your friend to let God?s people go or secure the release of the world?s youngest prisoner of conscience ? teenage schoolgirl Leah Sharibu held hostage for six years by terrorists for refusing to renounce Christ.

This is the unfinished business that I would urge you to use your time in retirement to pursue ? advocacy for the freedom of Leah.

You resigned during the obsequies for dearly departed and beloved US President Jimmy Carter. Real greatness is when you leave the most powerful office of the greatest nation on earth and become greater still afterwards like Carter.

He was greater and more beloved post-presidency as leader of the free world and that is an extremely tough thing to do. You were a historic and meteoric Archbishop leaving a career of service to mammon and becoming a shepherd of God?s flock but it now behoves you to be an exceptional ex-Archbishop. That?s the legacy of President Carter.

Accordingly, I urge you once again to work for the freedom of this young lady whose legendary commitment to Christ cost her personal freedom since February 19, 2018.

Incidentally your resignation comes on the third anniversary of the burial of Doug Wead, an American politician who aligned himself with Buhari to fight those who sought the welfare of the persecuted before his disgraceful arraignment for fraud and sudden death. Unlike him, you still have an opportunity to make amends. Rescuing Leah might even atone for those who feel your tenure hurt Nigerian anglicism.

Wishing you Godspeed ahead,

Emmanuel Ogebe, Esq. Washington

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