CAN slams leadership over comments on Buhari’s attendance at Islamic conference

The Reformed Christian Association of Nigeria (ReCAN) has faulted the leadership of CAN over its biased reaction to President Muhammadu Buhari’s attendance of the just-concluded Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

Buhari on Sunday departed, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for Abuja, after attending the 14th OIC Summit in Makkah.

Among others, the President noted with delight the decision of the organisation to support the Inter-Basin Water Transfer Project, aimed at recharging the Lake Chad.

However, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) criticized the trip, describing it as “unconstitutional”.

In contrary, a new wing of the association, ReCAN welcomed the president’s presence at the event, lashing out at CAN for once again fronting the agenda of the opposition.

The reformed Christian group made its position known in a statement signed by Interim President, Pastor Enoch Atumeyi.

According to ReCAN, this indiscretion has further diminished CAN, an organization whose pronouncement once carried the weight of law.

“ The impression Nigerians are having now is that CAN is now representing the devil with its increasingly worldly and politically tainted views that are at variance with not just the association’s founding mandate but also contravene Biblical prescriptions for sectarian relations,” the group stated.

“ The closest to reasonable idea expressed in CAN’s reaction was the suggestion that the President or Vice President should also attend the meeting of the World Council of Churches, which no one has opposed anyway. Such balancing act already exists at state and federal levels, which sponsor adherents of both faiths on pilgrimages to the birth places and holy sites of their religions.

“ We wonder why CAN did not raise alarm over President Buhari’s several meetings with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who is a notable Christian leader. They should have accused President Buhari of plotting to Christianize Nigeria by associating with the global leader of the Anglican Church.

“ ReCAN is concerned that CAN’s reaction to President Buhari’s presence at the OIC summit, with the reaction of other persons and organizations with selfish interests, is priming the country for sectarian strife. We condemn the insensitivity of CAN’s leadership in this regard because they should have rather toed the line of Matthew 5:9, which says ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.’

“ The leaders of CAN have rather made themselves into war-makers instead of peacemakers and we do not the children of what they will be called.

“ This is even as can continues to pretend that a Christian president, in the person of Dr Goodluck Jonathan attended the same summit in 2013 and nothing was heard from the association at that time. Perhaps the silence was because can leadership was at that time in bed with Jonathan’s government or because the association’s then president was busy receiving instructions on his gun-running deal.”

ReCAN, therefore urged Nigerians to resist CAN and its shenanigans.

“ We urge Nigerians, especially Christians to ignore the equivalent of false doctrine being published by CAN for God at no time instructed us to hate people on the scale being exhibited by CAN. Assuming Muslims or Islam are the enemies of Christians as being presented by CAN, the injunction to us in Matthew 5:44-45 (NIV) is ‘But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.’

“ Since we know that part of the angst within CAN is the loss of financial patronage from the federal government and the anti-corruption war that has kept slush funds away from contaminating God’s work, we advise the association’s leaders and members to see the changes in the country as a renewed call to true worship that is devoid of materialism that is taking over Christendom. They should also give strong consideration to genuinely preaching the words of God to the politicians in their congregations so that they will know to not steal public funds, which is the root of most problems in the country.”