Enugu Guber: CAN Distances Self from Faceless Bishops

Gideon Arinze in Enugu

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Enugu State chapter, has distanced itself from the alleged rejection of results of the March 18 governorship election in the state by a group of ‘faceless bishops’ in Umuahia, Abia State.

The CAN said the purported bishops did not represent the Christian community, as it also condemned the brazen attacks on the Enugu governor-elect, Dr. Peter Mbah, by the group “sponsored by desperate politicians.”

In a statement made available to journalists, the state Chairman of the association, Emmanuel Edeh, said: “The news about certain faceless bishops under the aegis of the so-called ‘Network of Evangelical Bishops of Nigeria (NEBN)’, who had allegedly converged on the capital of Abia State to accept the results of Abia State gubernatorial election while rejecting that of Enugu State came to us as a rude shock.”

He stressed that the process and election that produced Mbah as the state governor-elect were credible and transparent to the world even as it was on ground in the state to give first-hand information.

While noting that the faceless bishops had been sponsored to cause confusion and distrust in the state, the CAN chairman queried the basis of the alleged submission made by the bishops as it did not represent the true reflection of what transpired in the state, maintaining that none of the said bishops was an election observer or resides in Enugu State.

“For a group of people to have gathered themselves in Umuahia, are they election observers or monitors? Are they an extended arm of INEC? So nobody should listen to them,” he said.

Speaking further, the cleric said: “If they were given an impression of what happened in Abia State where they are staying or possibly doing their businesses that would have been better. They should have asked well-known bishops in Enugu State what really happened.

Edeh urged members of the public to disregard the statement purportedly issued by NEBN discrediting the Enugu State governorship results as selective and politically motivated, as it did not represent the state of affairs in the state.