CAN, Dunamis pledge to cater for family of pastor killed by Boko Haram

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Dunamis International Gospel Centre (DIGC), have pledged to take over the welfare of the family of the slain chairman of the association in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Lawan Andimi.

CAN Vice President, Caleb Ahima, disclosed this at a joint press conference with Dunamis, USA/Nigeria Law Group and other Foundations providing assistance to Boko Haram victims.

The conference, held at the Lord’s Garden headquarters of Dunamis Church, was organised to mark the second year of the abduction of Leah Sharibu and to advance measures to stem the rising insecurity in Nigeria.

Mr Andimi was abducted by the terrorists on January 3 and subsequently executed on January 21 for allegedly refusing to renounce his faith.

Miss Sharibu, on her part, was abducted alongside other students of the Government Science Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, on February 19, 2018.

While her colleagues were freed by the terrorists on March 21, Miss Sharibu was held back for allegedly refusing to convert to Islam.

Recent media reports claimed she had been married off to one of the commanders of the terror group and was already carrying a baby boy.

Mr Ahima, who represented CAN president, Samson Ayokunle, at the event, said Dunamis had assumed the responsibility of training Mr Andimi’s children.

He also said the family of the slain clerics would be relocated from their base in Michika to a safer place to shield them from the trauma the terrorists inflicted on them.

“CAN sat with Mrs Andimi and her family this week and advanced some money to help them and at the same time promised to educate all the children the late Rev left behind as well as build a house for the family to move them out of their current location because of trauma,” Mr Ahima said.

The CAN vice president said the country was sliding into anarchy and that the federal government seemed to have abdicated its responsibility of protecting lives and property of Nigerians.

“We want the world to know that the evil that is happening in Nigeria under the watch of a government that rode to power on a promise that it elected, it will stop the senseless bloodletting in the country, but instead more blood is being shed on a daily basis.

“Where this seem to have been ignored by those in authorities, we have every reason to passionately tell them that Christians in this country are Nigerians. They are part and parcel of this country and therefore should not continue to be eating up by this evil that is eating up the people of this great nation, especially the church,” he said.

Also speaking, the Senior Pastor of Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Paul Enenche, decried what he termed rising insecurity and religious intolerance in Nigeria.

He said unless the issues were frontally tackled, it would arrest the progress of the nation.

He said “Let it be crystal clear that the high level of insecurity and threats to Christianity in Nigeria are real and urgent measures must be taken to arrest this orgy of violence and existential threats that exists today.

“Who in this country at any level will be sincere enough to say that all is well with Nigeria? If this is not an emergency with a very calamitous dimension, what are we experiencing? To what extent should it go before people are convinced that the nation is literally being wiped out from the north.

The clergyman said it had been discovered that there was a bankruptcy of awareness of what was going on in the country.

He expressed surprise that there were people in the country who did not believe that the security situation had assumed a terrible dimension.

Mr Enenche said there was a high level of religious intolerance and extreme persecution of Christians, especially in the North-east yet some people he did not name pretended as if nothing was happening.

“It is so sad that some people are watching the evil going on and pretend as if nothing is happening,” he said.

The DIGC senior pastor added, “All is not well in the land. But in the name of Jesus, it shall be well. We believe that as this awareness rises, people take responsibility to say no, instead of keeping silent in the name of passivity, timidity and allowing the status quo to go.

“There are people in this country who are silent as if they have gummed their lips. People are watching evil going on and they say nothing.

“I want to say that if you are a businessman, you can only do business if there is a nation. If you are a pastor, you can only pastor a church if there is a nation. These things cannot continue anymore.”

Mr Enenche said the judgment of God would come hard on those sponsoring evil in the land and collaborating with criminals to unleash violence on the nation

He said, “It is time for everybody to rise and say enough is enough of evil of bloodshed, rule of terror in the land.

“And to every collaborator, sponsor and supporter of terror in the land, know that your days are numbered.

“The silence of good men is more wicked than evil of wicked people. When good men agree to keep quiet, evil thrives.”

At the event, relatives of Boko Haram victims took turns to narrate their experiences in the hands of the terrorists.

Mary Andimi, who spoke in Hausa, gave a vivid account of how her husband was abducted and eventually murdered.

Representative of some groups providing assistance to Boko Haram victims, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to fulfil his promise of getting Miss Sharibu out of captivity.

Credit: Premium Times