The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja has warned Nigeria's leaders are making the country "uninhabitable", causing young people to migrate illegally to Europe.
Cardinal John Onaiyekan said that if he were the president he would resign.
He criticized officials for focusing only on their own lives - building mansions and travelling the world.
The 75-year-old cleric said he felt ashamed when he saw trafficked Nigerian women soliciting on the streets of Rome and other Italian cities.
Cardinal Onaiyekan was speaking to the media ahead of a church gathering to address migration, taking place in the Nigerian capital on Tuesday.
In February, President Muhammadu Buhari won re-election in Nigeria, Africa's largest oil producer where about a quarter of the working age population is unemployed.
Many thousands of Nigerians have attempted the dangerous journey across the Sahara and over the Mediterranean to reach Europe in recent years.
The figures have been declining - from 40,000 arriving in Italy by sea in 2016 to 1,250 last year, but this is partly because of tougher EU-backed measures to crack down on people smugglers.
Many Nigerian migrants come from southern Edo state, which an established base for people smugglers.
Women and girls are often trafficked out of the country after being promised a job opportunity - but many are forced into prostitution.
"To tell you bluntly I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed - big cardinal from Abuja, I'm moving through the streets of Rome, Milan, Naples and I see my daughters on the street on sale," the cardinal told the BBC after the press conference.
"I'm ashamed and I stop and even greet some of them - you can't even engage them in conversation because they were brought out of the village illiterates. All they learn and all they know on the streets of Italy is what they need for this business - I'm ashamed."
The senior Catholic cleric hit out at Nigeria's politicians, saying if they had no vision on how to develop the country and provide adequate security they should not go into politics.
He urged the government to "repair Nigeria" so that instead of young people emigrating, tourists would flock to the West African nation and Nigerians could travel with dignity.
Nigeria is the continent's most populous nation - and a deeply religious society, with mainly Muslims living in the north and Christians predominately in the south.
Source: BBC
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Nigeria for their leaders to contain and they just need to separate fir efficient governance. How can a population of about 250 million be controlled and governed efficiently? they must come together and understand to separate into countries even if into 5 countries 250 million will mean each country will get 50 million which is pretty much big population. Migration won't solve problem but will increase kriminal and evil actions which don't speak well of the country. Their population is getting out of control and it is about time they take drastic measures about their country ! Ghana has about 7 million Nigerians living there illegally and doing all sorts of kriminal things which is not good for Nigeria, everywhere they go they carry their kriminal activities along which is giving bad name to that country! Americans are over 340 million people but they don't go out to do kriminal activities they leave it behind and go outside world but Nigerians carry with them their evil activities to the outside world,everywhere they go they practice krime and they are booted out ! Nigerians can't fit into any society!