The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has described the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020, as ungodly and satanic.
A statement on Thursday by Adebayo Oladeji, the Media Aide to CAN President, Rev Samson Ayokunle, asked President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately suspend the law He noted that the Federal Government has declared war on the church if it moved on to implement the law.
Oladeji said it is outrageous that section 839 (1) and (2) of the empowers the supervising minister “to suspend trustees of an association (in this case, the church) and appoint the interim managers to manage the affairs of the association for some given reasons.”
He noted that the church cannot be controlled by the government because of its spiritual responsibilities and obligations.
The statement read in part, “The leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria rejects outrightly the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020 that was assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari recently.
“The law, to say the least, is unacceptable, ungodly, reprehensible, and an ill-wind that blows no one any good. It is a time bomb waiting to explode.
“While we are not against the government fighting corruption wherever it may be found, yet we completely reject the idea of bringing the church, which is technically grouped among the NGOs, under control of the government. The Church cannot be controlled by the government because of its spiritual responsibilities and obligations.”
CAN queried, “How can the government sack the trustee of a church which it contributed no dime to establish? How can a secular and political minister be the final authority on the affairs and management of another institution which is not political? How can a non-Christian head of government ministry be the one to determine the running of the church? It is an invitation to trouble that the government does not have power to manage.”
The Christian body the government to “face the business of providing infrastructure for the people. Let them focus on better health provision, food, education, adequate security employment, etc. The government should not be a busy body in a matter that does not belong to it. The government does not have the technical expertise to run the church of God because of its spiritual nature.”
“If the government is bent on imposing a law on us which the entire Church in Nigeria is against, then, they have declared war on Christianity and the agenda to destroy the Church which we have spoken against before now is coming to the open more clearly. If you cannot give us good amenities of life, we would not allow you to take away our liberty to worship our Maker,” it vowed.
CAN, therefore, urged government to face the business of providing infrastructure for the people, focus on better health provision, food, education, adequate security employment, among others.
