Former Vice President of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has called on the Federal Government to make the safety of Nigerians its priority.

Atiku, in a message to Muslim faithful to mark the Eid al-Fitr celebration, said: “The protection of the lives and property of citizens is a divine decree and the sole responsibility of every government.”

The former vice president, however, admonished Muslim faithful to remain steadfast in piety by maintaining peace and in charitable causes.

According to him, the completion of the obligatory fasting in the noble month of Ramadan should cause them to be more committed to the injunctions of Almighty Allah.

“The completion of the Ramadan fasting is a call to duty that ensures we sustain the good deeds that the noble month requires of us.

“We must ensure that the lessons of the month are not lost on us and that the celebration of today is a reminder to the people, especially Muslims, to follow in the tradition of the noble Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in seeking closeness to God through worship and maintaining peace,” Atiku said.

The former vice president further enjoined the privileged in society to keep providing charity to the less privileged as this would go a long way in ensuring that the rising tide of economic downturn does not weigh too heavily on the poor.

“A greater number of people are being crushed by the economic downturn, and global events in the past three weeks have further exacerbated the situation. It is incumbent on the wealthy to be more compassionate by taking up the responsibility of charity to help cushion the effect of the burden on the poor,” Atiku said.