In what appears to be another move by government in Nigeria to clamp down on Christian activities, the Cross River State government has issued a directive to schools to stop prayers.
The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, rejected the directive of the state government which specifically banned morning and afternoon devotion in secondary and primary schools in Cross River State.
Archbishop Joseph Edra Ukpo, state chairman of CAN, in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday, called for the state government to immediately withdraw the directive as it was unacceptable because it denied freedom of worship in the state.
“Sequel to the letter from the Ministry of Education with reference No MOE/S132/VOL 1, by the Permanent Sectary of the Ministry of Education dated October 21, directing public and private primary/secondary schools across the state to suspend all assemblies (morning and afternoon) till further notice, the Christian Association of Nigeria, Cross River State chapter, hereby, says that such directive is totally unacceptable. This directive will negatively affect the moral upbringing of our children who are future leaders of this country,” the statement said.
Mrs. Anne Odey, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Education had issued a circular last week, directing all secondary and primary schools across the state to suspend morning and afternoon devotions. According to her, she was acting on the directive of the commissioner of police, Mr. Henry Fadairo “in view of prevailing security concerns in the country”.
Many schools in Cross River State are missionary schools.
