Attack on Christians: CAN replies Buhari in strong terms

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has told President Muhammadu that it was not doing the bidding of the terrorists by crying out for the freedom of Christians in the captivity of the Boko Haram and thereby charged his government to wake up to its primary responsibility of protectng the lives and property of Nigerians.

A statement on Tuesday by Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, spokesman to CAN President, Rev Dr Samson Ayokunle, re-emphasises the body’s  routinely call on the federal government to free captives from those who claim to be attacking Christians for religious sake.

The statement, written in strong terms, was in reaction to the one released by the presidency hours earlier.

CAN said: “These criminals are targeting the predominant Christian communities, killing, maiming and abducting the people with or without any resistance from the security agencies, is unprecedented.

“Let the government wake up to its responsibilities and see if we will not stop talking about its failure to protect our members. That is not politicisation of religion. The governor of Borno State is shouting that the soldiers are extorting money from the people instead of defending them.

“If the government has not been treating those criminals with kid gloves, let them publish names of their kingpins, of the terrorists, herdsmen killers and bandits in their custody and those who are being prosecution in the court of law for the world to see.

“How many Christians are heading any of the security agencies in the country? We are praying for the government on daily basis but that does not mean where the government is failing we should keep quiet. Since Leah Sharibu and other Chibok girls have been crying for help, there is nothing on ground to show that the government has been sensitive to their plight.

“The only reason why they are in captivity is because they are Christians, no more, no less. That the government is condemning the terror attacks is not the same thing as stopping the attacks and arresting the criminals responsible or are they telling us they are spirits? Telling us to keep quiet is adding salt to our injuries.

“Last week, it was Adamawa and on Monday, this week it was Kaduna State where 41 people were kidnapped! As long as the unpleasant situations in the country remain the same the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria will not keep quiet since that is the only thing we can do aside from praying for the captives.”