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CAN Disowns Group, Backs Kukah On Criticism Of Buhari’s Govt

Published

3 years ago

April 21, 2022

The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Kaduna State chapter, has said it was not aware that a group, Northern Christians Forum, dissociated itself from Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Hassan Kukah, over his criticism of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, noting it was in support of the fiery cleric.

It also disowned one Rev. Josiah Nabut of the Northern Christians Forum, NCFN, and reiterated that Bishop Kukah’s homily was for the congregation of his diocese, which was devoid of political affinity.

According to the Christian body, Kukah’s homily was a declaration of the harsh realities impacting the everyday life of members of the church

Chairman of the state chapter of CAN, Rev John Joseph Hayab, explained in a statement that their attention was drawn to the statement alleged to emanate from a group of unfamiliar individuals to CAN, claiming to be speaking on behalf of the Northern Christians Forum of Nigeria, NCFN.

He said: “That there exists a clergyman by the name Rev Dr Josiah Nabut who belongs to NCFN, he is dubious in the first place.

‘’Moreover, that CAN does not know of the existence of a presumed clergy further makes the statement a cynical attempt at discrediting the Revered Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto who is not only a member of CAN but a renowned priest.”

Consequently, CAN called on the person said to be Rev Dr Josiah Nabut, claiming to be the President of NCFN, to come out clean and tell the world the name of the church he pastors or where he is a member and the list of membership of the proclaimed NCFN.

“CAN, Kaduna State chapter, is the body that coordinates the fellowship of clerics and the entire Christendom in the state but cannot verify the fact that the said Rev Dr Josiah Nabut was a pastor of any church in Kaduna State.

“Accordingly, CAN calls on the preposterous group parading itself as NCFN to observe that Bishop Kukah’s homily was for the congregation of his diocese, hence, is devoid of political affinity but a declaration of the harsh realities impacting the everyday life of the members of the church.

“As the group submits that Kukah has ‘deep knowledge of the Bible, … blessed with the power to dissect socio-political happenings around the world and analyse the same for better understanding’ is a testimony that Bishop Kukah is in the best position to speak truth to power and that is what his Easter homily did.

“CAN, therefore, admonishes the mischief-makers under the guise of NCFN, dubiously led by the untraceable Rev Dr Josiah Nabut, to desist from employing the name of the Church for personal profits and scoring cheap popularity with the current leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, who under his watch, Nigerians cannot sleep with their eyes closed or travel freely due to heightening insecurity across the country,” VANGUARD quoted CAN.

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US Revokes Visas Of Foreigners Who Mocked Kirk’s Assassination

Published

4 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

The United States has revoked the visas of several foreign nationals who publicly mocked or celebrated the killing of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, officials confirmed on Tuesday.

The State Department said the decision followed an internal review of social media posts deemed “offensive and contrary to U.S. values,” adding that the country “has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans.”

Kirk, 31, co-founder of the conservative youth group Turning Point USA and a strong ally of former President Donald Trump, was shot dead during a political rally on 10 September.

His killing drew widespread condemnation across the political spectrum, with many describing the act as a targeted attack on free speech.

According to U.S. authorities, at least six individuals from Argentina, South Africa, Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico, and Germany had their visas revoked after making comments online that celebrated Kirk’s murder or insulted his supporters.

Examples cited by officials included posts calling Kirk a racist who deserved it, and messages mocking grieving Americans.

“We will not tolerate foreigners who promote or celebrate acts of violence against U.S. citizens,” a State Department spokesperson said.

The move underscores Washington’s growing use of immigration powers to respond to online behaviour perceived as threatening or disrespectful towards the country.

The Department said it continues to monitor social media content for evidence of incitement or endorsement of violence.
Civil liberties advocates, however, have questioned the decision, arguing that revoking visas for social media comments could set a worrying precedent.

Officials maintained that the visa cancellations were lawful, limited in scope, and aimed at protecting national integrity.

“Freedom of speech does not extend to foreigners seeking the privilege of entry while glorifying violence,” the spokesperson added.

The United States has increased visa scrutiny in recent years, requiring applicants to disclose social media handles and online activity.

The policy, officials say, is designed to prevent extremist sympathisers or those expressing hostility towards the country from entering its borders

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Israeli PM Netanyahu Back In Court For Graft Trial

Published

5 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was back in a Tel Aviv court on Wednesday for the latest hearing in his long-running corruption trial, which opened in May 2020.

The prime minister kept a smiling face as he and his entourage of several ministers from his conservative Likud party were heckled by protesters en route to the tribunal.

It comes after US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that the Israeli premier should be pardoned in his three separate corruption cases.

His latest appearance at the Tel Aviv court also follows the return of the hostages taken by Hamas as part of Trump’s US-brokered plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including champagne, cigars and jewellery, from billionaires in exchange for political favours.

In two other instances, Netanyahu is also charged with attempting to negotiate better press coverage from two Israeli media outlets. He has denied any wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a political plot.

During his current term, which started in late 2022, Netanyahu has proposed far-reaching judicial reforms that critics say sought to weaken the courts.

Those prompted massive protests that only abated after the onset of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

In an address on Monday to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, Trump told the chamber that Netanyahu should receive a pardon in the graft cases.

“Cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?” Trump joked, before asking his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog: “Why don’t you give him a pardon?”

The Israeli premier is also subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on suspicion of ordering war crimes in his government’s assault on Hamas militants in Gaza.

Netanyahu holds the record for the most years spent at the head of Israel’s government, having served 18 years in several stints as premier since 1996.

AFP

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FULL LIST: US Set To Carry Out Four Executions This Week

Published

6 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

A Florida man convicted of murdering two women he hired for sex was put to death by lethal injection on Tuesday, one of four executions to be carried out in the United States this week.

Samuel Smithers, 72, was sentenced to death in 1999 for the 1996 killings of Christy Cowan and Denise Roach in Tampa. They had been beaten and strangled and their bodies were found in a pond.

Smithers was executed at a Florida state prison at 6:15 pm (2215 GMT), the 14th execution in the southern state this year.

Another convicted murderer was also put to death by lethal injection in the midwestern state of Missouri on Tuesday.

The execution of Lance Shockley, 48, was carried out at 6:13 pm (2313 GMT) for the 2005 murder of a police sergeant, Carl Graham.

Graham was gunned down in an ambush at his home. The officer had been investigating a fatal car accident involving Shockley at the time.

Shockley maintained his innocence but his appeals were rejected by numerous courts, including the Supreme Court. Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe rejected his clemency request on Monday.

Two other executions are scheduled this week.

Charles Crawford, 59, is to be put to death by lethal injection in Mississippi on Wednesday for the 1994 rape and murder of Kristy Ray, a 20-year-old college student.

Richard Djerf, 55, is to be executed by lethal injection in Arizona on Friday for the brutal 1993 murders of four members of a Phoenix family.

In a letter last month apologizing for the crime, Djerf said he was ready to die and would not seek clemency.

“If I can’t find reason to spare my life, what reason would anyone else have?” he wrote.

There have been 37 executions in the United States this year, the most since 2013, when 39 inmates were put to death.

Florida has carried out the most executions with 14, followed by Texas with five and South Carolina and Alabama with four.

Thirty-one of this year’s executions have been carried out by lethal injection, two by firing squad and four by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a face mask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.

The use of nitrogen gas as a method of capital punishment has been denounced by United Nations experts as cruel and inhumane.

The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.

President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and, on his first day in office, called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”