**Churches require EFCC approval before withdrawing even a kobo from their accounts with banks.
**most churches have to cancel their crusades because the fund to organise it were trapped in banks.
**one is confused at how pastors, especially in the South East,
South West and South South have become sponsors and financial backers of
Boko Haram from Sanusi’s directives.
Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
Governor has frozen the bank accounts of most churches in Nigeria under
what his office claimed to be seeking for sponsors of Boko Haram. Many
churches have been stranded since the past two weeks due to their
inability to withdraw money from most commercial banks due to a CBN
directive that they must provide their list of shareholders and
directors before they could access their funds. Sanusi is much aware
that churches and Mosques in Nigeria do not have shareholders or
directors.
The churches in addition are required to fill forms which will be
taken to Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for endorsement
before even a kobo will be withdrawn by them.
This stance of the CBN under Sanusi have crippled a lot of church activities within the past two weeks.
This Sanusi is very funny oooo, how can pastors be sponsoring Boko Haram that's killing christians?
In Enugu, a cleric who anchors Healing Has Begun crusade, Archbishop
A.A Nwodika had course to cancel a crusade because the fund to
prosecute it was trapped in banks. In the same note, the preparations
for the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) biennial conference in
Enugu State billed for next month is being hampered because PFN cannot
access their account and their State chairman, Bishop Obi Onubogu whose
attempt to access the funds was unsuccessful had called upon concerned
members to assist them with aid so that the conference does not fail.
This stance of the CBN was principally given as caused by the
determination of the Bank to fish out financial sponsors of terrorism
including the routes through which they launder money. The Christian
Association of Nigeria have threatened a showdown with CBN and whosoever
is responsible for the order.
The CAN leadership under Oritsejafor had asked all the churches
affected not to fill any form in any bank . They asked their members
whose funds have been so seized to forward such evidences to their
respective state secretariat for onward transmission to the National
secretariat.
The legal adviser of CAN have threatened legal redress if Sanusi and
his cohorts at CBN do not lift the order. CAN leadership gave the order
at Umuahia last week when they converged to inaugurate the newly
elected Abia State Chapter of the organization.
They argued that churches are registered under Act C which is for
non governmental organization while the CBN demands is for Act F which
obtains for business organizations.
What is surprising to many is that President Goodluck Jonathan had
earlier said that Boko Haram sponsors are in his government. His special
assistants on Media, Reuben Abati and Doyin Okupe had alluded to the
fact that Boko Haram is sponsored by certain Northern Muslims.
Therefore, one is confused at how pastors and gospel ministers,
especially in the South East, South West and South South have suddenly
become sponsors and financial backers of Boko Haram from Sanusi’s
directives.
Those involved in money laundering are politicians and public
servants and these people are accessing their funds freely while
churches and pastors are being unnecessarily victimized and indirectly
tagged sponsors of Boko Haram
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