Police hold peace meeting with Anglican bishops over church crisis

The Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Nnanna Ama, has held a peace meeting with the embattled bishops of the Anglican Communion within the state over a crisis within the church.

The suspended Bishop of Awka Diocese, Alexander Ibezim, and the newly appointed supervising bishop of the diocese, Samuel Ezeofor, attended the meeting held on Friday on the state police headquarters in Awka.

The police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a press release on Friday.

The crisis

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Henry Ndukuba had suspended the archbishop for six months over varied allegations, together with promoting of church land for N2 billion.

The suspension, in accordance with the primate, was to permit for clear investigations into allegations in opposition to the archbishop and the diocese.

Mr Ndukuba additionally introduced the appointment of the Bishop of the Diocese of Aguata, Mr Ezeofor, because the supervising bishop of the church’s Diocese of Awka and coordinating bishop of the Province of the Niger.

This newspaper additionally reported that Mr Ibezim filed a lawsuit by which he challenged his suspension and a plan to self-discipline him over varied allegations, together with the promoting of the church land for N2 billion.

However, the Board of the Diocese of Awka, Anglican Communion, rejected the suspension of Mr Ibezim on the premise that the choice didn’t comply with due course of.

The board additional threatened to exit from the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) and rejoin the Church of England if the choice was not reversed.

Police peace meeting

Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, mentioned the police commissioner within the state held the meeting with all of the combatants at his workplace to realize peace.

“During the meeting, the Commissioner acknowledged the ongoing court proceedings relating to the matter and emphasised the importance of respecting the judicial process,” he mentioned.

The spokesperson mentioned the police chief

urged the events to pursue peaceable dialogue and discover acceptable channels throughout the church’s established ecclesiastical hierarchy to resolve their variations, with out prejudice to the continuing court docket proceedings.

Mr Ama, in accordance with the assertion, informed the warring bishops that parishioners and worshippers should not be drawn into the disagreement or made to endure the implications of variations amongst church leaders.

He known as on all involved to display restraint, mutual respect, and maturity within the curiosity of peace, unity, and the sanctity of worship.

The commissioner additional cautioned in opposition to inflammatory statements, confrontational conduct, and any motion able to escalating tensions or threatening public peace.

He warned that the state police command wouldn’t hesitate to take acceptable lawful measures to stop any breach of regulation and order.

The police chief reassured the bishops of the command’s impartiality within the matter and pressured that the command’s operatives would proceed to discharge their tasks professionally, deal with professional safety issues, respect the authority of the court docket, and uphold the rights of all events in accordance with the regulation.

“The Anambra State Police Command therefore calls on church leaders, parishioners, and other stakeholders to cooperate with ongoing peace efforts, respect due process, and refrain from any conduct capable of escalating the dispute into a security challenge,” he mentioned.

Background

PREMIUM TIMES stories that the peace meeting initiated by the police adopted rigidity on Sunday when some operatives have been deployed at St Faith Anglican Church in Awka the place Mr Ibezim reportedly officiated within the service regardless of his suspension.

There have been stories that the police within the state have been taking sides within the matter due to the alleged involvement of the Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Onyekachi Ibezim.

The deputy governor is a youthful brother to the suspended archbishop who’s on the centre of the crisis.

But the police within the state have since denied the allegations.

In a press release on Monday, the police spokesperson in Anambra State, Mr Ikenga, described stories suggesting that the police have been taking sides within the dispute as deceptive.

The spokesperson maintained that the presence of safety personnel on the church shouldn’t be interpreted as an endorsement of any occasion or place within the ecclesiastical disagreement.

“The Command wishes to clarify that the deployment of police personnel to any location is guided by the need to maintain law and order, prevent a breakdown of peace, protect lives and property, and ensure the safety of all concerned, irrespective of their affiliations or positions in the dispute,” he had defined.