LAGOS State government has announced plans to compile a register of religious organisations and establish a faith volunteer scheme as part of a programme to regulate the indiscriminate growth of churches and mosques. 

Over recent years, churches and mosques have sprung up at an alarming rate across the state, creating all sorts of social problems including noise pollution and the disruption of the lives of local communities. In addition, they also bring along the associated problem of security, as robberies, sexual abuse and child molestation has been known to take place in many places of worship. 

To address the menace, the Lagos State government has announced plans to partner with the umbrella bodies of religious organisations to introduce some form of regulation. Dr Abdul Hakeem Abdul Lateef, the Lagos State commissioner for home affairs, announced the proposals at a recent meeting with the executives of the Muslim community and Christian Association of Nigeria. 

Deliberations at the meeting centered on how best to foster a better relationship between religious organisations and the state government. Dr Lateef emphasised the importance of religious organisations in the state to set new standards for the establishment and operations of churches and mosques. 

He also canvassed the support for the establishment of a religious volunteer scheme made up of members of churches and mosques at every community that will serve as first emergency responders during disasters. This, he noted, will further compliment the efforts of existing agencies of the state. 

Dr Lateef also solicited the support of the two communities in providing a web portal to ensure easy collation of data of all existing places of worship. He added that these new reforms would provide a more cordial platform for peaceful co-existence among people of different faiths and serve as a platform where government can easily reach people in different communities with its policies, plans and activities.