CAN President calls for unity, mutual trust

By Tobias Lengnan Dapam

The President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN),

Archbishop Daniel Okoh, has called for unity and mutual trust in the country.

He stated this while speaking at the opening ceremony of the First Tri-Annual Meeting of NIREC for 2025, in Owerri, Imo State on April 30, 2025.

At the program themed, “Building Mutual Trust for National Unity,” he said I t is important to note that without mutual trust, unity becomes an illusion.

Okoh, who is the Co—chair of the  Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC), said the group has been working tirelessly to ensure unity between the two major religions in the country.

“Mutual trust is the soil from which true peace, security, and national development must grow.

Trust is not decreed; it is earned—through sincerity, self-respect, empathy, fairness, and consistency over time.”

Speaking further, he said, “For too long, our national discourse has been poisoned by mutual suspicion—by fears, by stereotypes, and by painful memories of injustice. Today, I call on all Nigerians to make a conscious decision to break free from the shackles of distrust. We must begin to see one another not through the distorted lens of prejudice, but through the dignified lens of shared humanity under one God.

“We must be genuinely committed to searching for the best way to live together in peace and unity in this nation that God gave to us. We must make Nigeria work. We can make Nigeria work.

“Healing is essential if we are to move forward. We must acknowledge the wounds of the past—whether they be political, religious, economic, or ethnic—and commit ourselves to honest dialogue, forgiveness, and restorative justice.”