CAN Leadership Crisis Depends Today's Elections Postponed Indefinitely

 

Rev. Dolphi waves away GMC allegations, insisting he is a member of Tekan/ECWA and has led the bloc in Taraba for 16 years.

Stakeholders accuse former Chairman Rev. Jirapye of fueling the crisis.

The Taraba State Chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has been thrown into turmoil following the indefinite postponement of its election, which was initially scheduled to take place today 

 January 17, 2025.

This latest development marks the second time the election has been postponed, with the first instance occurring in November of last year. On that occasion, the election was called off due to a dispute over rotational arrangements, after the Catholic Bloc threatened to boycott the election if their chairmanship candidate was not allowed to emerge.

Despite efforts to resolve the issues and constitute an electoral college comprising representatives from the five blocs of CAN, the election has been postponed again. Stakeholders have attributed this latest postponement to a petition filed by the Global Methodist Church against Rev. Philip Micah Dopah.

However, some stakeholders have come forward to accuse former CAN chairman Rev. Isaiah Jirape of orchestrating the confusion. According to them, Jirape is attempting to install a successor who will allow him to maintain control over CAN's leadership.

The accusations suggest that Jirape's actions are motivated by a personal vendetta against Governor Kefas, who refused to reappoint him as Chairman of the Taraba State Christian Pilgrim Welfare Board last year. Since then, Jirape has allegedly been using his influence to frustrate the governor's preferred candidate, Pastor Samuel Omajali of Deeper Life.

The ongoing power struggle within the Taraba State CAN chapter has raised concerns among stakeholders, who fear that the continued postponement of the election may have far-reaching consequences for the association's unity and effectiveness.

Meanwhile, Rev. Dr. Philip Micah Dopah of the United Methodist Church has described as baseless and unfounded the allegations labeled against him by the Global Methodist Church, signed by several clergymen, including Rev. Bazel Yoila Yayuba and Rev. Peter Y. Bawa. They allege that Rev. Dopah is not affiliated with the TEKAN churches, making him unqualified to run for any position under the TEKAN ECWA bloc. An unconfirmed report asserts that Dopah is vying for the Taraba CAN secretary, a position that wields immense power and influence.

The petitioners claim that Rev. Dopah's application to join the TEKAN churches under the auspices of the then UMCN, as led by Bishop John Yohanna Wesley, has not been approved; thus, his eligibility has been questioned regarding his vying for a position reserved for the TEKAN ECWA bloc in Taraba State. Furthermore, documents made available to the press state that a complaint was reportedly lodged against him with the Special Adviser to the Governor on Christian Religious Matters in Taraba State regarding a myriad of issues that are related to his alleged incompetence to vie for any position in Taraba CAN.

To corroborate the assertion above, documents were made available to the press which suggest the complexity of the situation: the Southern Conference of the United Methodist Church in Nigeria, led by Rev. Dr. Philip Micah Dopah, is applying to join the TEKAN Assembly, and the refutation that the United Methodist Church of Nigeria has readmitted the estranged UMCN Southern Conference into its fold.

On his part, Rev. Dr. Philip Micah Dopah has denied the allegations, describing GMC as a new and troublesome denomination causing crises everywhere, including the crisis that occurred in Karim Lamido local government of Taraba State that claimed the lives of people. Rev. Dopah said, "Where was GMC when I led the TEKAN ECWA for 16 years in Taraba State, first as secretary of the bloc and later as the duly elected chairman of TEKAN/ECWA for three consecutive terms?" He said his first election was through a ballot, and his second and third elections were through votes of confidence. Rev. Dopah supports his eligibility to contest the election by citing the tradition in TEKAN ECWA; he said all former chairmen of the bloc, including the immediate past chairman of CAN, Rev. Magaji Jarapya in Taraba State, who came from the TEKAN/ECWA bloc, graduated into the position of CAN executives after having served the bloc. Rev. Dopah said his nomination to serve in CAN followed his meritorious service in TEKAN/ECWA.

Regarding the position of Chairmanship, Rev. Dopah confirmed that the Catholic and CCN blocs have not held the position before, though he supported the nomination of a PFN candidate for today’s election, stating it is to allow PFN to finish its tenure, which was truncated by the death of Rev. Ben Ubeh, who only served for one year. Rev. Dopah assured that the key leaders of CAN have resolved this in the interest of peace, and he assured that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and the whole Christian community in Taraba State will rejoice.