The race for the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the next four years thickened on Saturday with the President of TEKAN, Rev. Dr. Caleb Ahima, declaring his intention for the Presidency of CAN.

He was said to have scaled the first hurdle and would partake in the fierce contest scheduled for June, next month.

TEKAN, a conglomeration of 15 churches in Northern Nigeria under the aegis of Tarayar Ekklisiyoyin Kristi A Nigeria (meaning, Fellowship of the Churches of Christ in Nigeria) belong to the same bloc with Evangelical Church Winning All.

The ambition of Ahima was ratified during the recently concluded TEKAN General Assembly held at the Headquarters of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria in Kwarhi- Mubi, Adamawa State.

Already, a five-member committee has been set up to facilitate the achievement of his aspiration, with different mandates, including reaching out to ECWA, since TEKAN and ECWA form one of the five blocs of CAN.

The committee was also expected to make strategic contacts towards realisation of the dream.

Ahima said: “May I state that ECWA has keyed into this aspiration successfully. Efforts by detractors to break the unity of the bloc have been futile. It is God who gives leadership. My prayer is that the will of God will be done.

“The journey to leadership cannot be permitted in any way to divide God’s people or be allowed to cast aspersion on the image of the church. The threshold we have reached as Nigerian church is too dangerous to embrace the costly luxury of suicidal pursuit of selfish and personal interests.

“My nomination by TEKAN for the contest and ECWA’s acceptance of the nomination is the voice of God since, quite often, the voice of the people is the voice of God.”

With his ratification, Ahima would slug it out with the incumbent President of CAN and President of Nigerian Baptist Convention, Rev. Dr. Samson Supo Ayokunle, whose regime and recent pilgrimages to Aso Rock had become controversial.

Ayokunle took over from Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor who had been seen to be his godfather having allegedly worked for his victory in 2015.

Ahima had always expressed concern over the continued spate of banditry and insecurity in the country.

Recently, he said, “the government must sit up”, because Nigeria’s seeming current journey towards anarchy had become a serious indictment which must be stopped at all costs.

He expressed displeasure over the rising wave of criminality and bloodshed in the country, especially in the North East, North West, South East, South South, Middle Belt and North Central.

Ahima said: “The Legal Adviser of the Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria, L. O. Yabura; Principal Medical Officer of the General Hospital in Takum, Southern Taraba, Dr. Sunday Oduniyi; one Dr. Sule Audu and his two sons and several others have been in the hands of kidnappers in Taraba State for upward of two months now.

“TEKAN is concerned that this unfortunate development has reached an extent the even legislators are beginning to call Nigeria a failed state.

TEKAN is strongly appealing to the Federal Government, the country’s House of Assembly, Service Chiefs, governors and all persons saddled with the constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property of Nigerians to remember that life is sacred and its sanctity precious in the presence of God.

“Our national, regional, district and local leaders must remember that every nation is a reflection of its leaders and should know that our seeming current journey towards anarchy was a serious indictment which they must stop at all costs.

“Nigerians are not only disillusioned but seemed to have lost confidence in the government and ability of the country’s security outfits to protect them.

It becomes pertinent to again sound the clarion call that government must sit up and seen to be on her toes in the bid to rescue the country from its descent to anarchy and collapse.”

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