BOKO HARAM: CAN WANTS COMPENSATION FOR VICTIMS

Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Borno State has again demanded adequate compensation for all the churches destroyed in the February 18, 2006 religious crisis in the state as well as victims of the July, 2009 Boko Haram attack.

At a briefing on Thursday in Maiduguri, CAN maintained that Christians in the state have been subjected to physical and psychological trauma following the 2006 religious crisis and 2009 sectarian insurgence that engulfed the state, adding that government was yet to respond to the yearnings of the association on the need to compensate the victims.

'We have met the governor on several occasions on this matter and we have unequivocally demanded adequate compensation for the churches that were burnt or destroyed as well as those who lost their property or beloved ones.

'We believe the compensation would go a long way in healing the wounds of the affected churches and persons. It would have also shown that government was concerned about the plight of the people but nothing has been forthcoming. We have not lost hope and that is why we are still making the call,' CAN state chairman, Rev. Uganda Mdurvwa told journalists at the briefing.

Mdurvwa noted that the nation has been affected by ethic and religious conflicts, adding that recent development across the country has shown that social, economic, tribal and cultural problems were the root cause of the tension.

He also identified poverty, corruption and mismanagement as parts of the underlying factors that fuel several crises and conflicts in different parts of the country. While congratulating the nation on her 50th anniversary of her independence, he said the occasion ought to be a good opportunity for the current leadership of the country to return the nation to her lost glory.

His words: 'Jubilee is a happy and holy year and freedom from bondage. Leviticus 25 verse 13 says 'in this year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his possession.' Therefore, the Jubilee celebration is an opportunity for redemption, time for reward and repairs, a time to refocus and to build the broken walls.'

The CAN leader called on all Christians to continue to intensify prayers for God's intervention in the country even as he also urged Christians and Muslims to live together in peace, noting that no progress could be achieved in an atmosphere of rancour or crisis.