CAN begins interaction with presidential candidates

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2 years ago

Daniel Okoh, CAN President

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has commenced interactions with presidential candidates of the various political parties ahead of the 2023 presidential election

The Presidential Candidate of the Action Alliance, Hamza Al-Mustapha on Tuesday, attended the presidential interaction which was held at the National Ecumenical Centre in Abuja.

In his welcome address, the President of CAN, Archbishop Daniel Okoh said they have spent time reviewing the problems that hinder peace and progress in the country and are making suggestions on how best to improve them.

“We have consulted with Nigerians of diverse religious, ethnic and social identities on the problems of the country and the solutions to them have been articulated in the strategic document we call, the Charter for Future Nigeria.

According to him, the Charter for Future Nigeria begins with a diagnosis of Nigeria’s problem and locates it primarily in an incoherent constitutional and institutional framework that defines governance and social and economic interactions in Nigeria.

“This incoherence is the main reason that the country today is almost submerged in the chaos of insecurity, instability, and economic stagnation. The document considers this incoherence in political, social, and economic dimensions.

“The document makes genuine recommendations for resolving Nigeria’s recurrent crises that border on justice and fairness, equality of all ethnic and religious groups, equal access to basic economic and social rights, political freedom and an egalitarian and just social order.

Okoh said the overriding concept in this transformation is ‘democratic citizenship’, which should be the focus of governance at all levels in Nigeria in promoting the socioeconomic well-being of every Nigerian citizen irrespective of religion, ethnicity or social pedigree.

“In this interaction, we will present the high points of this strategic document and listen to your response to the issues they raise. This is a conversation by a concerned religious community that desires the best for its country.

Our interest is that all candidates clearly understand the concerns of Nigerian Christians and propose policies and programmes to address those concerns. We believe that with this kind of respectful and sincere conversation we will find lasting solutions to these crises.

In his response, the presidential candidate of the Action Alliance, Al-Mustapha said it has been established that Nigeria has all the causes of insurgency in high percentage and that no country can be at peace with such a record.

The said economy has been in shambles and a declining state due to connivance between some citizens living in Nigeria and some western forces who feed on impoverishing the Nigerian population.

“From our investigation lately, it shows that Nigeria has come to a point where all causes of insurgency are at high percentages and there is no country that can have about 3 causes and still be in peace,” he said.

Al-Mustapha said in 2023, that Christians, Muslims and other religions must stand against rigging elections in any form in order to get it right.

“If 2023 must be realistic, the church, the mosque and all religions should stand against any form of rigging, technical rigging, direct rigging, moral rigging, or religious rigging, you must go against these four at all costs.

“Nigerians should look out for some qualities before they elect a leader. First is the ability of the person or persons to be elected, once you find anything wrong with his ability then the person cannot kick-start.

“The person must be brave enough to make laws, to take unpopular bills to the legislature. The person must be fair and must have a fair knowledge of the country’s problems, he must have the zeal of the youth,” he added.

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