NATIONAL President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor has called on Nigerians and particularly Christians to ignore the threat of the Boko Haram sect that Christians in the north must vacate the region, just as he stressed that every Nigerian possessed the constitutional right to live in any part of the country.

Pastor Oritsejafor stated this during an interaction with Tribune Church on Friday. He added that though there was disturbing news that Christian faithful were being killed in the north, he held strongly that God would stay in control of the situation.

“We have information that they have started killing our people in Damaturu yet I want to say that the threat that Christians must leave the north is a joke. It is definitely a joke because it is not going to happen,” he stated.

He condemned in strong terms the fact that no group could rise up to undermine the constitutional right of all Nigerians to live in any part of the country. For him, “Nigeria belongs to everybody and no group or persons have the right or the legitimacy to stand up and say that one group cannot stay in this part or the other.”

For Christian residents in the north, the cleric advised that they should go about with their legitimate businesses and ignore the threat of the sects, holding that they must leave their places of residence. “Christians should not waste their time leaving anywhere. They should face their legitimate business and continue with their lives. I believe that not only is God in control, we will see the evidence of God's control on this earth. They have no right and it is not going to work. It is not going to turn to anything by the grace of God,” he stated.