Religious Affairs Minister Reverend Godfridah Sumaili says a lot of people who are addicted to pornography fail to function properly in marriages.

And Rev Sumaili yesterday refused to give her position on government’s move to legalize marijuana, saying Cabinet has not concluded discussions on the matter.

Meanwhile, Rev Sumaili has appealed to church mother bodies to join hands and pray for the nation following riots in Chingola.

Speaking at a press briefing in Lusaka, Thursday, Rev Sumaili appealed to the church to preach about the evils of pornography which she said have destroyed a lot of people’s lives through addiction.

“I have had an opportunity of counselling a lot of young people who have been addicted to this (pornography) and when they go into marriage, they can’t function properly because of this addiction. So, it’s such an evil thing. Families and their children need to talk about this,” Rev Sumaili said.

She said some young people end up killing themselves because of being bullied day and night.

“It’s unfortunate that there has been so much abuse of social media. We are a Christian nation standing on Christian values and principles. But in addition to that, Zambia has a rich cultural foundation and these things (cyberbullying, fake news and pornography) are foreign. Surely, the issues of cyberbullying are very serious because some young people end up killing themselves, they are bullied day and night. There is so much falsehood, so much fake news, so much accusations, and so much judgemental statements. We need to desist from that as a nation. Let the church help us talk about these things in churches. Let them teach us about the values and principles, let them talk about the evil of pornography because people get addicted to these things. And that destroys their lives,” Rev Sumaili said.

When asked to give her ministry’s position on the legalisation of marijuana for medicinal purposes, the minister said it would be premature for her to comment because the matter was still under discussion by Cabinet.

“My view on the matter is very simple. Cabinet has not exhausted discussions concerning Marijuana. So, it will be very premature for me to start making a statement on the matter. There is a small committee of the members of Cabinet that are thoroughly looking at the matter and they will bring their views to Cabinet [and] then we shall discuss it. I am sure at that point, then we will say something,” Rev Sumaili said.

She also appealed to church mother bodies to join hands and pray for the nation following riots in Chingola.

“We are all aware that in the recent past, the nation has been engulfed in fear, anxiety and confusion because of the alleged ritual killings and attacks on the Copperbelt. And some people have taken advantage of this situation and caused violence and riots. The government has been very concerned about this very unfortunate situation and that is why as the President of the Republic of Zambia said yesterday [that] the Minister of Home Affairs and the Minister of Defence have been tasked to investigate this matter. In the meantime, the presence of security has also been reinforced in the area. Our nation is a peaceful nation and this peace should be valued and natured because in the absence of peace, there is fear,” Rev Sumaili said.

“As the defence wings are undertaking interventions, we need spiritual intervention for God to guide us and to intervene in this situation. The Ministry of Religious Affairs is calling for a battle cry of prayers by the people. Let us invoke our covenant as a Christian nation and call upon the name of the Lord in unison and in agreement. I am calling for effective and fervent prayers from the children of God. I am calling upon the churches, intercessors, families and all peace-loving Zambians to arise and pray. I encourage the church mother bodies to encourage their members to pray because when we call, the Lord answers. The bloodthirsty spirits want to see more violence for more blood [but] we have to resist violence and rumour-mongering.”

She warned those circulating videos of people being murdered to stop the vice as it was creating fear and planting seeds of violence.

“I also wish to warn those circulating videos where people are being murdered to stop it. Those videos are spreading fear and confusion among our people. And these videos also plant seeds of violence and death. Let us stop circulating those videos. Do not be a courier of evil. I am calling for wider participation of prayer to pray for our nation so that people can be at peace…I know that there are some people who are not even sleeping because fear. Actually this Saturday, there is an organized prayer rally in Chiwempala in Chingola where the various churches are going to come together and pray for that area so that we can have some peace,” said Rev Sumaili.