CAN, S/Kaduna leaders boycott peace summit

The Southern Kaduna Christian Leaders Association (SKCLA) has boycotted the peace summit organised by the Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC) and Concerned Citizens of Southern Kaduna.

The Christians leaders, in a press statement signed by their chairman, Bishop Simon Peters Mutum, lamented that key stakeholders of the region who have been bearing the brunt of the genocide against their people over the years only heard about the peace summit a few hours to its commencement.

They added that from all indications, the arrangements were concluded without the involvement of some of the key stakeholders of Southern Kaduna who have been suffering from the killings.

"We are, therefore, deeply concerned about who the ‘Friends of Southern Kaduna’ are, and what may be their real motives! We are also troubled that a peace summit can be organised for people without involving the key leaders of the people.

"So, inasmuch as we would love to be part of a peace summit, we want to know who the organisers are and what they really want to achieve by this summit, going by the way they planned it! We would also want an explanation as to why the leadership of SOKAPU, CAN and SKCLA were sidelined in the planning of the summit," the statement said.

"We would have wished that the peace summit be rescheduled until all our questions are properly answered and every key player (the youths, CDAs, traditional institution, regional groups of interest and religious groups) are contacted, organised and carried along! That is our prayer," the statement added.

"If, however, the summit progresses as planned, the Southern Kaduna Christian Leaders Association (SKCLA), in conjunction with other Christian groups will have no option but to withdraw their participation in the summit.

Meanwhile, the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) had earlier also appealed for rescheduling of the summit to a later date to enable them to conclude consultations.