\Some Concerned Christians in the North held emergency meetings in Kaduna on Friday and Saturday respectively and discussed the unfolding events trailing the Federal Government’s planned action on fuel subsidy.
\Some Concerned Christians in the North held emergency meetings in Kaduna on Friday and Saturday respectively and discussed the unfolding events trailing the Federal Government’s planned action on fuel subsidy.
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Most disturbing to us is the much-publicized endorsement of the Federal Government’s action by the leadership of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) as was relayed by its National President, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor.
Our meeting was not borne out of any political, geographical or religious sentiments; rather it was conceived purely on national and common good and towards the betterment and welfare of all Nigerians irrespective of creed. After some critical assessment, consultations and analyses from economic experts, we arrived at the following resolutions:
The removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government is ill timed and insensitive because it is an outright addition to the sufferings of the Nigerian masses wherever they are and no matter their religions.
That national leadership of Christian Association of Nigeria CAN under Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor did not act in consonance with the reality of the situation of things in Nigeria, by their hasty endorsement of government action on fuel subsidy. From their dispositions and body language, the CAN president is using the umbrella body of the Christians in charting a different aspiration from what we used to know of the organization.
On many occasions, Christians in Nigeria and beyond have been embarrassed by his (Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor) take on several national issues.
CAN has been brought to ridicule and has been denigrated by those who know little or nothing of our religion and even the richly cherished history of CAN because of the activities of its present leadership. We know how our parents and grand-parents worked under Northern Christian Association of Nigeria, which was formed on the 11th April 1964, as a response to critical issues at that time; it was the same spirit that continued till on the 27th August 1976 when the Christian Association of Nigeria was established in Lagos. From then till now it has been a pro-peoples sympathetic association until now.
We appeal to Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor to study the stewardship of all his predecessors, right from Cardinals Ekandem and Okogie, to Akinola, Mbang and recently Archbishop Onayeikan and learn from their temperate leadership of CAN.
We also refute in strong terms any opinion by analysts who perceive his action on the grounds of certain affiliations to President Goodluck Jonathan’s descent from the Niger Delta region same region with pastor Oritsejafor. Several pioneer presidents of CAN were indeed from that region, the late Cardinal Ekandem, and Cardinal Okogie were all from the region but it was clear that CAN was even at its highest points under their watch. Alas we wonder what is going wrong now.
We also wish to state categorically, that the best way of supporting President Jonathan, is to speak the truth at all cost and not to blindly support everything the government plans to do. We may support Jonathan as a Christian, and bear some of his challenges but on this issue he is wrong and going astray and desperately in need of redemption.
For the CAN president Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, we wish to draw his attention that posterity is a strong scale in measuring all the actions of mortals and the rest of us including him are not free from it.
Finally, as concerned Nigerian Christians and patriotic citizens we hereby dissociate ourselves from this action. It is purely his volition and agenda. We are against all other government policies that are unpopular.
What President Jonathan needs are people who are truthful and honest because there will certainly be a day of reckoning. More so, President Goodluck Jonathan should disregard bootlickers and prophets of doom, and to abort this proposed decision of removing fuel subsidy.
For Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor and his co-travelers, we leave them with the following words of Pope St Gregory’s warning to religious leaders.
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A religious leader should be careful in deciding when to remain silent and be sure to say something useful when deciding to speak. In this way, he will avoid saying things that would better not be said, or leaving unsaid…ill-advised silence can leave people in error when they could have been shown where they are wrong. Negligent religious leaders are often afraid to speak freely and say what needs to be said for fear of losing favour with people…they are acting like hirelings, because hiding behind the wall of silence is like taking flight at the approach of the wolf…if a religious leader is afraid to say what is right, what else can his silence mean but that he has taken flight? Whereas if he stands firm in defence of his flock, he is building up a wall for the house against its enemies. Anyone entering the priesthood accepts the office of herald and must by his words; prepare the way for the terrible judgment of the one who follows. If then the priest neglects his preaching, what sort of warning cry can he, a dumb herald give? That is why the Holy Spirit settled on the first religious leaders in the form of tongues: because those whom he fills, he fills with his own eloquence.
SIGNED
Yahuda Peter Marsa
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