On Friday 29th March, 2019 a section of the media reported the visit of religious groups to the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria; Muhammadu Buhari.
In the news, it was reported, which Rights and Freedom Advocates (RIFA) waited for a refutation for three days but could not get anything indicating the message was actually true, that Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) led by its President, Reverend Ayokunle Samson went to Aso Rock Villa, the seat of the government of the Federation and made mischievous demands.
It was also reported that the Muslim group also visited the President on same day but without any clear cut demand from the President.
Similarly, On Monday April 1, 2019 another release signed by a Pastor who claimed to be spokesperson of the organization was reported in some section of the media by same CAN repeating same perfidious move.
In a release made available which could best be described as April fool.
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In the said release, CAN was quoted to have clamoured for ethnic and religious balance in the election of National Assembly leadership. But good historians in Nigeria project wonder when CAN becomes an organization that recognizes balance and fairness in appointment.
When Goodluck Jonathan was President of Nigeria, 93% of his appointees were CAN members and complaints by other religious adherents to Dr Jonathan to reverse the lopsided appointment including Constitutional Conference composition of 2014 was rebuffed because CAN whose real operational headquarter then was Aso Rock directed the then President to ignore calls from other Nigerians felt aggrieved by his sectional and jingoistic posture that nearly plunged the nation to civil unrest.
When David Mark was senate President and Ike Ekweremadu was his deputy and Aminu Tambuwal was the Speaker when Emeka Ihedioha was his deputy, balance and fairness was not in CAN dictionary because public fund was flowing in regularly into offering making private jets popular like cars.
It was during the same period Katsina Alu was the Chief justice of Nigeria. Who does not know that since 2015 blocking of channels through which government fund flew into dubious offering led to pause in competition for private jets by fraudsters purportedly regarding their criminal conspiracy in defrauding the nation as blessing?
Is CAN not alive when Ondo, Ekiti and other states with substantial number of other religious adherents especially the Muslims ignored fairness and justice and its members took the governor, deputy governor, speaker and other key government posts?
Could Nigeria have been so peaceful had reverse been the case?
Until CAN started its pseudo-religiosity, religion has never been key issue in determining who gets what in Nigeria although the revelation by CAN eventually shows that it has furtively been using same trick in the past especially in securing appointment and promotion for its members.
It was a balance appointment to CAN because it favoured it.
The whole of Seventeen southern states of Nigeria had all of their ministers as CAN members during Goodluck Jonathan reign.
It was only the sinister move to use Jelil Adesiyan of Osun state to rig Ekiti State election with his cohort Musiliu Obanikoro that made Jonathan appointed him as the only odd Minister that served under him from southern Nigeria at the exit hours of his administration.
So, was CAN dead then because its leaders could ferry huge sum of national wealth abroad in illicit business as facilitated by its surrogates in government?
All appointments made then were either made or ratified by CAN including Special Advisers and Assistants.
It even got worse when employment could only be secured on submission of Resume and Curriculum Vitae to churches.
Many competent people were denied employment because they could not attach themselves to a church to submit their curriculum vitae.
The worst was the recruitment into security forces that only CAN determined the quota to be allocated and who got what in each state of the Federation. This still continues till date.
The same CAN that was tagging All Progressives Congress (APC) as Islamic party could still be shameless to tell the world if Ekiti and Ondo State governors under APC are of Islamic faith or that the Ministers from all the Federation serving under APC are Muslims.
The treacherous act of CAN leadership under its demon-inspired agent; Bosun Emmanuel is still fresh in our memory when it hired some foreigners to orchestrate a fake horrific video purportedly claiming the Muslims were attacking and maiming CAN members.
Could CAN be bold to apologize to the nation as one of the agents later confessed at US Congress that they were hired by some dubious characters in Nigeria to carry out the task to malign President Muhammadu Buhari and the Muslims?
If not CAN conspiracy, when Katsina Alu was the Chief Justice of Nigeria with David Mark as Senate President that later introduced doctrine of necessity that installed Goodluck Jonathan as Acting President, was CAN leaders sleeping then or can they tell us that the heads of all the government then were not its members?
Truly, if reverse was the case then, CAN would have executed its agenda of destroying Nigeria.
CAN has, not till date, explained why its President in Ola-Oluwa local government area of Osun State; Pastor Olatoke caught in foiled Boko Haram terrorism in 2014 was prevented from being prosecuted by security agencies.
Could Nigeria have enjoyed subsisting peace if other religious adherents did so?
CAN call for release of criminals of Ajara Chiefdom in Kaduna State caught in the February 2019 Kaduna massacre was another dangerous interest CAN is known for in Nigeria.
Until its members involved in Benue onslaught were caught and exposed, it continued playing holier-than-thou blame game on Federal Government (FG) not knowing it was carrying out the subterfuge against the nation.
When the former Military administrative chief; Idris Alkali was gruesomely murdered by those who seemed to have CAN sympathy, the association was in the forefront of influencing the suspects’ release but would CAN have done same if the military chief was its member?
Even in the January/ February 2019 killings of hundreds of people in Kajuru Local Government area of Kaduna State, CAN quickly went on air with another of its members;
Chidi Odinkalu to claim the numbers of their target victims was not up to what the security report gave to the governor which the governor later released through his media aide Samuel Aruwan.
It was less than a week before the reality busted that the number of victims even exceeded what the governor initially dolled out as 66.
Why is CAN so selfish? Even if a mediocre or certified thief in charge of any administration or agency has performed woefully and such is condemned, you can never see CAN condemning such perhaps because the only interest of CAN is to have regular inflow of illegal offering from such members and so far the interest is served he must be protected by retaining the person as against national interest for development.
Where did we get the enemies of the nation from?
When its members were calling Buhari different unprintable names including the one that claimed to be on the gate of hell that Buhari was from Sudan, CAN was celebrating and remained silent while only a few of its members with independent minds condemned him.
Did same person from Sudan win the election and played host to CAN? The one in Kaduna and the other in Auchi like their colleagues in other places fanning the ember of discord including the same CAN president reported and quoted by several sources to have been caught on record in Ibadan publicly insulting the President and demanding he must not be voted by his followers dubiously ran again to him for undeserved recognition.
CAN hatred got to peak when suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation; Babachir Lawal was forced to burst out that the claim of Buhari death came from the Church.
Was CAN created to promote evils, hatred and destruction of Nigeria?
The real Christians should rescue the association from dealers purportedly leading the sheep before they do the final burial of the organization as no patriotic person seems to have headway to its leadership position.
CAN was quoted again as requesting President Muhammadu Buhari to respect separation of power but same CAN was reported to demand from the President to ensure balance in National Assembly appointments.
Was that not contrasuggestible of what CAN requested from the President to ensure separation of power?
A confused Association indeed was talking! When in 2015, the President allowed National Assembly for the first time since 1999 to have freedom in electing its leaders, was CAN leadership sleeping then?
Once you see CAN leaders organizing dubious meetings with politicians, it only looks for appointment for its members at the detriment of their followers, majority of who constitute e-rats that defend those that sell them in billions of Naira.
For the fact that other Nigerians are silent and watchful should not be a licence for CAN to be taking them for a ride.
An association like CAN would have been expected to be at the vanguard of scolding its criminal elements among its members engaging in raping of congregation or killing for spiritual blessing.
But in Nigeria, the association would not promote spirituality in its true nature but rather materialism.
Was that the basis of creating the association?
When last has the Association condemned any of its members accused of killing people for ritual or raping members?
No, it won’t issue any release or threat at that rather it only cares about how much offering is realized from those being defended.
Was that the teaching learnt from the scripture?
There are many agencies and institutions since creation that has always been headed by CAN members such as University of Ibadan till date.
Even the Board and Governing Council of many agencies are reserved for CAN members.
We have details in our custody which shall be made public in the nearest future. The fact that good Nigerians remain patriotic should not be the licence for CAN to insult the intelligence of all.
RIFA therefore call on the FG and the National Assembly to disregard the dubious agenda of CAN to foist its stooges on the nation that will help it, perhaps, restore the return to South Africa to repatriate the seized fund.
When last did CAN hear Muslims or the traditional worshippers promoting divisive and retrogressive agenda like CAN?
Their silence should not be taken as cowardice.
Therefore, RIFA call on the National Assembly and the FG not to allow CAN penchant for mischief and desire to foist evil agenda on the nation to influence its giant stride in rescuing the nation from the grip of prophets of doom and epitome of maladministration.
Luqman Soliu
President
Rights and Freedom Advocates (RIFA)
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