From Gyang Bere, Jos
Chairman of Northern Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Reverend Yakubu Pam, has proposed out-of-court settlement for the leadership crisis that has polarised the Church into two factions in the past three years.
Speaking in the aftermath of a Supreme Court judgment which held that the initial court processes were violated and the other party to the suit was not duly served and that the matter be returned to the lower courts, Rev. Pam said dialogue with the parties to the rivalry will do the Church more good than protracted litigation.
Rev. Pam, who is the District Superintendent of the Assemblies of God Church (North), regrets that such crisis could deter the spiritual growth and spread of the church and propagation of the gospel.
He called on the two rival groups to surrender to the interest of the congregation and the Church and accept to embrace dialogue as litigation itself is a sin which genuine Christians and properly founded church cannot afford because it does not guarantee peace and brotherhood.
Reverend Pam who said the Assemblies of god is prepared to work out and set a dialogue and reconciliation mechanism in motion, also
advised the parties to the suit to accept the intervention and mediation of other authorities within the Christian folk.
He pointed out that it should be borne in mind by all that the assemblies of God Church is an integral part of the national Christian community, and so cannot exist and operate in isolation like a cult group.
As one of the leaders of the Church, he said he is worried by the continued crisis, and called on the supporters of the disagreeing groups not to misconstrue the verdict of the Supreme Court of Friday, February 24, and misinform the public, as it conferred no approval on any of the parties.
Emphasising that the summary of the court verdict is simply “no winner, no vanquished”, Pam said celebrating the verdict by either party is absurd, and can only worsen tensions and spoil prospects for dialogue and peaceful resolution of the crisis.
Reverend Pam who is also the chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), of the nineteen Northern States of Nigeria and Abuja said “the judgment of the Supreme Court has simply given room for dialogue and peaceful resolution of the matter. I think the parties should agree, so that we come to a round table and resolve the matter”.
The suspension of one Reverend Paul Emeka as the General overseer of the Church eight months to the expiration of his tenure has been a subject of litigation between him and the General church Council since 2014.
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