The newly elected President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Most Rev. Daniel Okoh, said he and his team will engage in dialogue with their Muslim counterparts to resolve contending issues so as to avert looming conflict.
Okoh, during an interview shortly after his ordination at the Christian Ecumenical Centre in Abuja, said that he believed in dialogue and that Nigerians have to adopt dialogue to resolve issues.
“I will use my experience as someone who has been in CAN for the past 20 years. I committed to ensuring religious dialogue with the Muslims. We need dialogue now in order to avoid war. Let us talk now so that we can actually avoid war.
“We don’t have a choice, we have to keep talking even in the midst of all the confusion, we will continue to dialogue to increase the mutual understanding we have for one another and Nigeria will be much better,” he said.
On insecurity and the current public apprehension over the safety of lives of residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Okoh said the association still believed in the capacity of the security agencies to arrest the situation.
“The high level of insecurity in the country is a source of concern, but as Christians, we remain confident that we have the presence of God who rules in the affairs of men. We believe that God will prosper the efforts of genuine officers who are working day and night to ensure that there is peace in Nigeria.
“You don’t make your point by sounding violent all the time. We will engage government and security agencies and I will ensure that any policy that would be implemented by CAN would be based on the new constitution handed over to me,” he said.