$9.3m Scam: Catholic Church Denies Report Indicting Oritsejafor

The Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) yesterday distanced itself and the President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama from reports that the Catholic Church had indicted President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor over the $9.3 million linked to the aborted arms deal.

In a statement made available to journalists in Abuja, the church stated that there was no time, Archbishop Kaigama made any allusion suggesting that Oritsejafor was culpable.

The statement signed by the Director of Communication, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Rev. Fr Chris Anyanwu observed that "our attention has been drawn to the reports in some online  editions of some newspapers such as the Daily Post, Daily Trust,  New Telegraph and the Guardian  with misleading headlines, posted  on Thursday 25th September 2014,  and suggesting that Most Rev. Ignatius Ayau Kaigama, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) accused Pastor Ayo Ortistejafor of denting the image of the Christian Association  of Nigeria over the case of the  jet that was found with $9.3milion  allegedly owned by the CAN President.

"The said report is not only false and malicious but a calculated attempt to further sow the seed of disharmony between Catholics and the leadership of CAN. While we disassociate ourselves from the newspaper reports, it is important to put the records in the right perspective.

“Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama granted an interview with the Hausa BBC Service in Kaduna in which he condemned money laundering".

While quoting Kaigama,  Anyanwu maintained that what the CBCN president said was that "the relevant authorities  in Nigeria ought to investigate  the issue of the $9.3million arms deals saga dispassionately and ensure that those found guilty of money laundering be punished according to the provision of the existing law of our land against money laundering. “He never, in the said interview, cast any aspersion on the person of Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

"Reporters who monitored the said interview in Hausa BBC Service totally misrepresented the Archbishop by misquoting him. Knowing the person of Archbishop Kaigama as a man who is committed to ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue, there is no way he can make such an inflammatory statement against the leadership of CAN which is capable of causing dissections among the CAN family".

According to Anyanwu, "it looks like some people have problems with the person of Pastor Oritsejafor and wanted, as the saying goes ‘to borrow the mouth of Archbishop Kaigama to chop their onions’. It appears that some people are hell-bent on setting the Catholic Church against the rest of CAN. Some want to use unfortunate situations to promote their fortunes. Yes the Catholic Bishops did in the past make their observations about how CAN could be run better not with the intention to discredit the body so that things could be corrected fraternally, but there were screaming headlines which tended to put the Catholic Church in negative light. This is happening again."

He stressed that "all that Archbishop Kaigama said about the $9.3m saga was that the matter should be investigated in depth to avoid insinuations, psychological projections and unhealthy rumours and gossips. A transcription of his interview will reveal that the words attributed to him were a figment of somebody’s imagination.

"He said nothing about Pastor Ayo hobnobbing with Mr President or dragging CAN to the mud; neither did he mention the pastor’s name or Mr. President. Pastor Oritsejafor has in the mean time very clearly and convincingly explained his own side of the story in a phone conversation with Archbishop Kaigama and Pastor Oritsejafor is to be presumed innocent unless found otherwise.
"We are indeed embarrassed at the monumental scale of misrepresentations in the said reports. What we expect from Journalists is genuine reports based on truth and facts, which ought to promote public trust and confidence.

"A hall mark of responsible journalism is that reporters ought to cross-check their facts before publishing them whereas reports based on falsehood, rumours and preconceived ideas such as this, are not only malicious but a calculated attempt to strain the good relationship between the Catholic Church and the leadership of CAN.

"There is a poison of deliberate misinformation in the air, deadlier than the Ebola virus disease. This may be a symptom of how forthcoming political events may be handled in the media. Some persons want to at all cost, see the North and the South, Christians and Muslims fight.

Anyanwu concluded that "no matter how hard our detractors may try, they will not succeed. As leaders of the Catholic Church, we shall continue to be objective in our assessment of the situation in the country and endeavour to edify by our comments and actions and not to destroy. This is