CAN’s visit to Buhari: Ayokunle didn’t represent the Church, says NCEF

THE National Christian Elders Forum, NCEF, has dissociated itself from the recent congratulatory visit to President Muhammadu Buhari on his victory at the election, describing the visit as subjudice, as the determination of who won the 2019 general election is still before the court.

A statement by the group’s President, Elder Solomon Asemota(SAN), said the group was shocked to read in the news that the President of CAN, Rev. Dr. Samson Ayokunle, with some CAN officials and Christian leaders paid a “congratulatory visit to President Buhari on his purported victory in the 2019 general election.”

The body of eminent Christians drawn from various Christian denominations insisted that such a victory visit was premature and it was presumptuous for anyone to congratulate President Buhari for “winning” an election that is being contested in court.

The body said: “The action of the CAN’s President, Rev. Ayokunle, is a further confirmation of all the protests and petitions of NCEF in 2018 querying the faithfulness of Dr. Ayokunle to Christ and to His Church.

“In its 2018 report entitled Factors hindering Christian Political Consensus for 2019 election, the NCEF provided irrefutable facts that Rev. Ayokunle deliberately frustrated Christian political consensus in a country in which religion has become a major factor in politics.

“It would be recalled that during the elections, Rev. Ayokunle presumptuously deployed a 1,000 man CAN Election Observers team to monitor the elections nationwide. The action was presumptuous, since CAN does not have the constitutional responsibility of engaging in politics.

“Christian leaders deliberately established Christian Social Movement of Nigeria (CSMN) for this purpose in 2001 as the socio-political arm of the Church.

“Nonetheless, after observing the elections, the 1,000 man CAN Election Observer team is yet to release its report before CAN rushed to congratulate one of the contestants.

“Since all the other observers have since released their reports, where is the report of the CAN Observers Team?”