CAN urges condemnation of illegalities against Christians

Ortom decries carrot in North, stick in S’East

Christain Association of Nigeria (CAN) has urged all patriotic Nigerians to speak out against persecutions and illegalities being meted out against Christians in the country.

This is as Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State decried the pampering of bandits in the North and persecution of those trying to protect their land in the South East.

The CAN leadership also supported Ortom’s call for social justice for all groups in the country.

CAN President, Dr. Samson Ayokunle, made the position known yesterday at the breakfast meeting of the association, which is holding its National Executive Committee and General Assembly meetings in Makurdi, Benue.

Dr. Ayokunle stated that Benue was among the most persecuted States in the last six years.

According to him, states with a large population of Christians, especially in the North, have faced the most severe persecution ever seen in the history of Nigeria.

“It is disheartening and most disappointing for some leaders to come out boldly to support the gross injustice being perpetrated. What type of audacity in supporting evil and illegality are we witnessing today?” he said.

Ayokunle commended Ortom for his courage in speaking out and urged other patriots to emulate him.

“You have never disappointed your people, who chose you, by taking sides against their interests. It is not when you die that matters, but what you die for,” he stressed.

On his part, Ortom stated that he would not be intimidated to accept the injustice, which, he said, was being meted out against the church and other vulnerable groups in the country.

The recent letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, Ortom added, was a call for justice for various groups, pointing out that he had not received any response from the Presidency, but reactions from “thugs”.

According to the governor, history is being repeated, as the conquest and occupation agenda of expansionists, which was stopped at Ushongo Hills in Benue 200 years ago, will also suffer a similar fate this time.

He wondered why a military operation on land, air and water would be ordered against those fighting to protect the dignity of their people in the South East, while negotiations would be made with bandits and payment made to them with government money in the Northern part of the country.
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