The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has hailed Jim Obazee’s removal as executive secretary of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria.
He was fired by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday night.
General Secretary Rev. Musa Asake said:”The sack of Jim (Obazee) is good riddance to bad rubbish. Anybody that wants to fight the church will find himself where he does not want.
“Jim got to the position by the grace of God, but set out to probe and destroy the church of God. I spoke with him several times on this issue but he wouldn’t listen. He was going to take the church to what is worse than Armageddon.
“Thank God the authorities have stepped in to right the wrong. He should have been fired a long time ago and we don’t know why he was left alone, but God’s time is always the best.
“That code should be thrown out completely because government should not interfere with the church. The church is a no-go zone for the government.
“Doing that has serious implications. Ig they attempt it, it will lead to confusion in the nation.”
Senior Pastor , Living Spring Chapel International, Lagos, Pastor Femi Emmanuel, said: “It is a right step in the right direction. Government has no business meddling in the internal structure and governance of the church.
“There is no government in the world that does that.
“Anyone who does that is incurring the wrath of God. Yes, there could be financial regulation of churches but never in the internal structure of the church.
“Everything that has to do with the internal structure and governance of the church must be expunged from the code.”
Obazee, a former pastor of the RCCG, said only 89 of the 23,216 registered churches in the country had complied with FRC provisions.
The leadership of CAN has slated an emergency meeting on the FRC code and other related matters.
CAN President Rev. Samson Ayokunle said the organisation’s lawyers would review the issues and make their position known to the public.
Ayokunle spoke through his Media Assistant Pastor Bayo Oladeji.
“CAN will react at the right time and make its decision public. We are studying the situation. CAN leadership will meet. Our lawyers are studying the situation,” he said.
The church leaders were interviewed by The Nation newspaper.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
