By Chris Udochukwu
Abuja (Precise Post) – The presidency has accused the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), of engaging in disinformation which it said could further divide Nigerians.
This is coming as the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF); pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere; and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar have disputed Buhari’s claims that 90 per cent of the victims of Boko Haram were Muslims.
While Afenifere insisted that majority of the victims were Christians, ACF said the number of Muslims or Christians affected by Boko Haram attacks was not known.
Atiku, however, argued that Buhari should not rationalise killings.
CAN, in its reaction to the opinion piece written by the president, where the latter claimed that 90 per cent of those killed by Boko Haram were Muslims, dismissed Buhari’s statement as untrue.
The apex Christian body, in contrast to the president’s claim, argued that the reason the government of Buhari had failed to pay ransom for the release of all Chibok girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2014 was because 80-90 percent of the girls were Christians.
According to the Christian body, in a statement by its Director of Legal and Public Affairs, Mr. Kwamkur Samuel, the government of Buhari quickly paid ransom for the release of Dapchi schoolgirls in 2018 because the girls were Muslims, adding that the only Christian girl among the Dapchi girls, Leah Sharibu, was left in the captivity of her captors till date.
But in a swift reaction to CAN’s allegations, presidential spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, in a statement, titled: “Ransom on Chibok/Dapchi schoolgirls: Again, CAN Misses It,” reiterated the comment of the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in 2018 that the federal government did not pay any ransom for the release of 105 Dapchi schoolgirls as alleged by the United Nations (UN).
Adesina said CAN was engaging in “disinformation” and advised the Christian group “to desist” from it, wondering why CAN would choose to believe the report of the UN as against that of Mohammed, adding that it was needless for CAN to be antagonistic to government moves all the time.
He said: “When the media in August 2018 quoted a United Nations Report alleging that the Federal Government paid a ‘huge ransom’ for the release of the abducted Dapchi schoolgirls on March 21, 2018, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, immediately disputed the report, insisting that no ransom was paid, ‘little or huge.’
“According to the minister, ‘there must be a conclusive evidence to support such a claim. Without that, the claim remains what it is – a mere conjecture.’ And we ask who should Nigerians or CAN rather believe, if there is good faith?
“We urge CAN to desist from disinformation which can further divide Nigerians. The letter and spirit of the Holy Bible do not support discord, which CAN’s allegations are liable to cause.
“The Christian body need not be antagonistic to every attempt by the administration to move Nigeria forward, before it can champion or defend the Christian faith.”
Adesina also said Buhari had stated clearly in 2015 that if paying ransom would guarantee the release of Chibokgirls, the president would not hesitate to pay it, describing Buhari’s remark as “a testament” to his commitment to the girls’ release.
He described every Nigerian as a stakeholder in the necessity to promote peace in the country, saying promoting peace is also scriptural.
“President Muhammadu Buhari made it very clear in 2015 that if ransom needed to be paid to free the Chibok schoolgirls, he would pay. That is a testament to his commitment to get the girls back.
“Notwithstanding our different faiths, we are all stakeholders in the promotion of peace in our fatherland. And the Holy Bible enjoins us to, ‘Seek peace, and pursue it,” Adesina added.
