CAN Protests Killing Of Deborah Samuel In Rivers State
CAN has protested over the killing of Deborah Samuel in Rivers State, The Nation can confirm.
Members of the Rivers chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) on Sunday trooped to the streets of Port Harcourt to protest the killing of the 22-year-old Deborah Samuel in Sokoto State.
The Assistant Secretary, CAN, John Odinichi, who led the protest on behalf of the state Chairman, said it was in obedience to the directives of the national body.
Odinichi appealed to other Governors in the North to imitate Governor Nyesom Wike, who he said had provided peaceful coexistence for all religious groups in the State.
He said: “There has not been no incident of religious crisis in Rivers State. If It can be done in Rivers state and other Niger Delta states, it can also be done in the North.
“It is a Biblical injunction that we rejoice with those who are rejoicing and mourn with those who mourn. We have come to register our displeasure to the babaric act that led to the death of our late sister.
“We are saying as Christian Association of Nigeria, Rivers State chapter that enough is enough. Each time killings like this happen they give us flimsy excuses. Islam is not a violent religion yet they kill christians at the slightest provocation.
“As religious scholars there is no religion that encourages violence. In The Nigerian Constitution it is enshrined, the freedom of association,worship and religion. Why should another religion stop the freedom of another religion? This is our worry.
“We say that Christians in Nigeria cannot subscribe to be second class citizens in our country. We are Nigerians by birth. We are not adopted. We are sending this message to our Muslim brothers, that they should please advise their adherents”.
Odinichi asked Islamic authorities to check the scholars preaching violence to their followers.
He said: “The golden law says whatever you wish to be done to you, you should also do to others. In other words what you don’t want others to do to you don’t do it to them.
“As humans, we all have violence in us. Our Christian religion has taught us that we should follow the path of peace and we have been maintaining peace in this country.
“We want muslims in particular to follow the path of peace. Islam is not the only religion in this country. We have the African Traditional Religion, pagans, atheist and others.
“The African Traditional Religion in which many of us emerged from being converted to islam or christianity has no record where the advent of african traditional religion rose to kill anybody or victimize anyone for leaving their religion.
“We criticise, condemn the activities of African religion, none has carried sword to slaughter anyone both muslim or christian.
They should practise their religion in a decent orderly manner”.
