Alleged Church Demolition: CAN Unfair To Me, Says Shema

Ibrahim-ShemaPresident of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor’s comments alleging that the Katsina State Government is planning to demolish a church in the state is very unfair and uncalled for, Governor Ibrahim Shema has said.

CAN had raised concerns that a proposed road project led to the demolition of a section of the 99-year-old Evangelical Church Winning All, ECWA, headquarters mission compound, Mataazu, in Mataazu LGA of the state and that the development was causing serious religious tension in the area.

But speaking when he received the state inter-faith committee report yesterday, the governor said he was surprised to read about the matter on the pages of newspapers.

Shema stressed that there was no order to demolish any church or place of worship and the Christian community in the state has attested to that.

He said his administration has been fair to all religions.

“We have come a long way in Katsina; we grew up together and live together. You can hardly differentiate between Muslim and Christian in our state. It is a record we set a long time ago”, he said.

Earlier, chairman of the committee, Isa Dodo, said after thorough investigation, the committee recommended fencing of the two plots of land housing the school and the church.

He said the Ministry of Land was able to trace 1937 document and another in 1984, indicating that the two plots are separated by a path.

He also called for the payment of allowances to pastors, just like the imams in the state are currently enjoying.