Northern CAN Denies Report Of Supporting Atiku Abubakars Defection

CHRISTIAN Association of Nigeria, CAN, in the 19 Northern states and Abuja has disassociated itself from a report endorsing the erstwhile Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s defection to All Progressives Congress, APC, saying that the publication is the figment of the imagination of certain evil minded impostors.
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In a telephone interview with our reporter, Public Relations Officer of Northern CAN, Elder Sunny Oibe said CAN is an umbrella association of Christians in the country and not a political party and therefore has no business endorsing people who abandon their political party for others in search of political fortunes.
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Said he: “Our attention has been drawn to a publication in some media houses purportedly with the caption; ‘Northern CAN backs Atiku’, and we say that Northern CAN does not back any politician or political party. As a religious organisation we have the responsibility of praying to God to institute God- fearing leaders who will reduce the suffering of the masses in the country.”
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According to the Northern CAN spokesman, the publication was embarrassing and in bad taste “as the author, Mr. Jonathan Sambo is not an executive member of the North East chapter of CAN, and cannot therefore speak on behalf of the chapter. He claimed to be the PRO of the chapter but after consultation with the leadership, it was revealed that there is not such position in the chapter.”
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Elder Oibe therefore warned politicians to stay clear of impostors who are out to extort money from them on behalf of different organisations ahead of the 2015 elections.
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He also cautioned journalists to cross check information made available to them by unscrupulous persons who are desperate to plant stories in different houses, either for their pecuniary benefits or to satisfy their dubious political pay masters, stressing that the Northern CAN has totally disassociated itself from the publication in its entirety.
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Speaking in a similar vein, chairman of North East CAN, Rev. Ryal M. Shauibu described the publication as “most absurd for anybody to claim that a Christian body like CAN will endorse the defection of Atiku to APC. In 2011, Atiku met us at the CAN executive council and we confronted him with the plight of Christians in the North East zone and we asked him what all the past political leaders had done about the religious persecution in the region.”
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According to him, Jonathan Sambo is speaking for himself and not on behalf of the chapter, noting that “the report is false, falsely fabricated and we deny it in its entirety. Its evil for anybody to say CAN North East backs Atiku’s defection, because we are not a political organisation. Politicians owe this nation good governance and must rule with the fear of God, not forgetting that every citizen is equal before the law.”
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“Why should the North East CAN celebrate the advantage of APC giving its religious coloration which tinted towards one direction,” Rev. Shauibu said, noting that as the nation approaches another election year many politicians would deploy all manner of impostors to act their clandestine scripts.
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He therefore warned politicians and journalists to beware of such deviants in the society in order to avoid such embarrassing publications.