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From Sola Ojo, Abuja
The Chairman of the Northern Christian Association (NCA), Reverend Joseph Hayab, has dismissed claims of division within the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), saying the emergence of the Northern Christian body was done with the knowledge and consent of CAN leadership to resolve long-standing confusion over the use of the organisation’s name in Northern Nigeria. He also debunked a viral article claiming the NCA is breaking away from CAN because Southern CAN was busy with message of prosperity while neglecting Northern Christians who are suffering grave insecurity, saying such remains the opinion of the writer.
What is happening? Is CAN now divided?
No, I don’t think CAN is divided. What many people do not understand is that it was never the plan, desire, or intention of Northern Christians to create a new name or organisation. That was not our original plan. However, there had been a mix-up over time whenever we issued statements. When we made statements as Northern CAN, journalists often reported them simply as statements from CAN in their news headlines. It was only when people read the full story that they realised it was actually Northern CAN speaking.
Because of this confusion, the National President of CAN wrote to us on October 16, 2025, inviting us to a meeting scheduled for October 23. Another letter followed on October 17. The difference between the two letters was that the first did not include an agenda, while the second contained two agenda items: the state of the nation and any other business.
So we honoured the invitation and attended the meeting on October 23 2025. Six of us from Northern CAN were invited. The meeting was presided over by the CAN President. The CAN Vice President was present, along with the leader of ECWA in Nigeria, a representative of the OIC leader, representatives of PFN and other blocs, as well as the General Secretary.
From our side, I attended alongside my Vice Chairman, Rev. Jonah Samson, my Secretary, Bishop Mohammed Naga, and my Assistant Secretary, Evangelist Tajudeen, who is also the Chairman of CAN in Zamfara State.
When we arrived, we discovered that they had also invited Rev. Pam, the former Chairman of Northern CAN, and Elder Oibi, the former General Secretary of Northern CAN. In their view, they considered all of us to be key stakeholders in Northern CAN and wanted to discuss the issue with us.
After the opening prayer and a short devotion, the CAN President explained that the meeting had only one agenda. He said there had been persistent confusion around the use of the name “CAN.” According to him, while they could not stop Northern Christians from meeting, fellowshipping, or carrying out their activities, they wanted to appeal to us to adopt a different name instead of using CAN.
After the explanation, I was asked to respond on behalf of my colleagues. I thanked them for inviting us and for explaining their concerns. I told them honestly that it would not be appropriate for us to immediately give a new name on the spot. Instead, I requested that we be allowed to go back, consult widely, and then return with a proposed name.
Some of the other attendees expressed concern, not because they opposed the idea of a name change, but because they had assumed the meeting would focus on the previously stated agenda items. However, the President clarified that the purpose of the meeting was solely to address the issue of the name.
So when you and your team departed the meeting venue, you began consultation on what name to bear?
Yes, following that meeting, we began consultations and proposed four different names to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Eventually, one of the names was approved, and that is how the current name emerged.
So the idea was not to divide CAN. It was simply a response to concerns raised during that meeting about the confusion surrounding the use of the name.
Is NCA still a part of CAN?
Anybody who touches CAN touches all of us. We remain part of that community. What we represent in the North is simply a fellowship of Northern Christians. We are not competing with CAN, and we are not in any way separating ourselves from it. So the impression that there is a division is simply not correct.
Are you in the knowledge of viral publication detailing why Northern Christians can no longer trust CAN?
Of course, one of the things that created this wrong perception was an article written by a commentator, whom I will not dwell on. I have always said that the writer is a very talented person, and I will not take that away from him. But unfortunately, much of what he wrote about us was completely fabricated.
For instance, the article claimed that we had named our secretariat after Remi Tinubu. That was the first time I was hearing such a claim. If something like that had actually happened, I would have known. I have no issues with CAN, and there is no conflict between us. It is like someone suggesting that you are fighting with your brother when, in reality, you have no quarrel with him. So when did I ever have a problem with someone building a cathedral or doing their work? None of my team members even knows anything about such claims.
Interestingly, the day that article was published, one of our bishops was the first to see it. He is the chairman of CAN in his state, Bishop Julius, a Catholic bishop. Immediately he saw the article, he forwarded it to me and said: “Read this. A mischief maker is about to twist our genuine intention.” I took my time to read the article and then forwarded it to our leaders. I told them clearly that someone was trying to distort our genuine intentions. Unfortunately, the article went viral, and many people who read it simply believed it without verifying the facts. But the truth is that there is no conflict.
In fact, when someone shared the article on our church platform, I responded immediately. Without even contacting CAN or any of its leaders, I simply said: “This cannot be true.” Because it was clearly an attempt to pitch Northern Christians against Southern Christians.
It appeared to me that the writer might have had issues with some Southern Christian leaders or perhaps other political interests, but instead of addressing those issues directly, he decided to hide behind our simple idea of creating an identity that would prevent confusion. When we eventually adopted the name, we explained that we were essentially returning to the historic name Northern Christian Association. This is not something new.
Historically, the idea dated back to the late 1950s. Around 1958, missionary groups such as the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM) and the Sudan United Mission (SUM) met in the Middle Belt region to discuss issues affecting Christians in Northern Nigeria.
SIM, for instance, was the mission that established what is today known as the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA). SUM, on the other hand, was instrumental in establishing churches such as the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), as well as other Reformed mission churches like NKST and ERCC.
At that time, both before and shortly after Nigeria’s independence, Christians in the North felt they were not being adequately represented or carried along in the political and social system. Historical records show that there were elements of segregation in practice, even though the political leadership of the time projected an image of accommodation.
Because of these concerns, Christian leaders concluded that it would be difficult for individual denominations to address the issues alone. They believed the concerns had to be raised collectively. As a result, in 1964, they formed what was known as the Northern Christian Association in Kaduna. The body was led by prominent Christian leaders, including Ambassador Jolly Tanko Yusuf, who was serving with them at the time, along with other respected clergy and community leaders.
So what we have today is essentially a continuation of that historical effort, a platform for Northern Christians to coordinate their concerns and identity, not a rival organization to CAN.
So Northern Christians had already formed a platform before CAN came into existence. What was then known as the Northern Christian Forum or Northern Christian Association was established long before CAN.
About 12 years later, certain developments led to the establishment of CAN, a story I have explained several times. So historically, the Northern Christian Association predates CAN by about 12 years.
Because of that background, when the issue of confusion over the use of the CAN name arose, we felt that the simplest solution was to return to our original identity. That is why we adopted the name Northern Christian Association again.
But this does not mean that CAN no longer exists in Northern Nigeria. Not at all. When we gather to discuss national issues affecting Christians across Nigeria, we operate within CAN. However, when we meet specifically to address issues affecting Christians in Northern Nigeria, we do so under the Northern Christian Association. For example, I sit in Kaduna, but I cannot fully understand or represent the specific challenges faced by Christians in Port Harcourt. Every region has its own peculiar issues.
This arrangement is similar to the Northern Governors Forum. You will not find the Northern Governors Forum mentioned anywhere in the Federal Government of Nigeria constitution. Yet governors from the northern states meet under that platform to discuss issues of common interest and coordinate their responses. That is exactly what we are doing.
Ordinarily, if there had been no confusion, we might have continued to operate under the name Northern CAN. But since the name created misunderstanding, there is nothing wrong with reverting to the name Northern Christian Association, which is historically ours.
Our main objective is simple: to ensure that Christians in Northern Nigeria have their rights protected, their voices heard, and that they are recognized as full and legitimate citizens of their states. No Christian should be treated as a second-class citizen anywhere. Let me give you an example. Recently, a list for a Direct Short Service recruitment was released, and in Zamfara State, two of the names on the list were clearly Christian names. This immediately sparked protests and questions from some people who wondered why Christian names appeared on a list from Zamfara.
We had to step in and demonstrate that those individuals were indeed bona fide indigenes of the state who simply happened to be Christians. When the person who raised the concern was presented with the facts, he showed maturity by acknowledging the mistake and apologising.
But situations like this illustrate the kind of challenges we often face.
A similar case also occurred in Sokoto State. I personally took the matter up with the former governor, Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa. I told him that while we were all working toward unity in Northern Nigeria, there were complaints that some indigenous Christian youths from the state were being challenged during recruitment processes.
He later met with the state leadership and explained the issue to them, noting that the concern had been raised by Northern Christian leaders. The explanation given was that the suspicion arose from a previous incident involving individuals who were allegedly recruited using the identity of the state despite not actually being from there.
These are the kinds of issues we try to address through this platform.
Ultimately, CAN remains CAN. It is an association that brings Christians together to share their views and coordinate their voices. But we must remember that CAN itself is not Christianity; it is simply an organisation of Christians.
Christians remain Christians whether they belong to CAN or not. What we are trying to do is ensure unity, cooperation, and protection of the rights of Christians, especially in Northern Nigeria. We do not want people to misunderstand this effort. It is not about division, but about clarity and coordination.
Within Christianity we have many denominations — Presbyterians, Catholics, Living Faith, Redeemed and others. Each of them remains a separate church. We are not calling all of them one church. It is only when we come together for fellowship that we operate under a common platform. That is what CAN represents — a fellowship of Christians.
In fact, I have argued before that within Christendom we have relatively few umbrella organisations that speak on behalf of Christians. If you compare it with our Muslim counterparts, they have several platforms. For instance, there is the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, and in the North there is also Jama’atu Nasril Islam. In addition to these, there are groups like the Sharia Committee, the Council of Ulama among others. These are different organisations that speak for Islam in different ways.
So we should not over-blow an issue that is actually quite simple. The Northern Christian Association is not in competition with CAN.
In the North, people already understand the concept of “Northern Christians.” Once you mention that phrase, it naturally describes Christians living in Northern Nigeria.
Let me also clarify that this idea did not originate from me. I did not initiate it. The request actually came from the President of CAN and the CAN President-in-Council, who appealed that we consider adopting a different name to avoid confusion.
Any lesson from all these explanations?
There is a lesson even from the Bible. The disciples once saw some people doing the same things they were doing, but those people were not part of their group. They went to Jesus and said, “We saw some people doing what we are doing, but they don’t belong to us.” But Jesus told them that if they were not against them, then they were for them.
The same principle applies here. Some Christians may not belong to certain organisations or attend particular meetings, but they are still Christians. So we should not heat up the polity or create the impression that there is a conflict or division. There is no war. There is no violence. There is no fight between us. Unfortunately, some commentators and writers continue to twist the narrative, appearing on television and in publications to misrepresent what is happening. I appeal to them in the name of God: please do not set fire where there is none. Do not create confusion where there is no confusion. As far as I am concerned, and as far as my team is concerned we are on the same page with the leadership of CAN, including the National President and the President-in-Council. Our goal is unity, cooperation, and ensuring that Christians continue to work together peacefully.
