COVID-19: Christ Embassy shuns Akwa Ibom’s guidelines for reopening

"It is an attempt to gag the church."

Akwa Ibom State faced some tension on Saturday as Christ Embassy, Uyo, rejected the guidelines issued by the state government for reopening worship centres, describing them as impracticable and unacceptable.

The state government issued the guidelines as a means of containing the coronavirus pandemic in the state. This was done after due consultation with the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, led by Rev. Dr Nduese Ekwere.

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However in a media briefing held at the church headquarters in Uyo, the pastor of the International Worship Centre, Emmanuel Effiong, stated that CAN’s agreement with the government on the guidelines would not be binding on members of the church. This, according to him, is because Christ Embassy is not a member of CAN.

Effiong said that the use of face masks throughout the congregational worship as stipulated in the guidelines exposes worshippers to health hazards, while the seating arrangement of not more than 200 no matter the size of church is a clear attempt to gag the church. He further made reference to the Nigerian Constitution to buttress his points, stressing that the guidelines issued by the state government were against the fundamental right to worship and made it difficult to exercise one’s faith as a Christian.

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He said, “Our church is a global ministry and we do not believe or advocate unionism, rather we believe in the unity of faith. Today, we state without equivocation that we are not members of CAN or any other association in the country and as such hold the strong belief that we cannot and should not be bounded by whatever decision the association reaches with the government.

“While we do not question the right of anybody or churches forming association nor are we against CAN or any association setting up guidelines for their members, it is unacceptable to believe that such guidelines will be binding on non-members of their groups.

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“The use of face masks for the entire duration of congregational worship is an act, which has been scientifically proven to be hazardous to the health as uninterrupted use of face masks over a long period of time may cause hypoxia-the absence of oxygen to sustain bodily functions.

“Also, we are expected not to sit more than 200 worshippers during each church service, among others. This is a clear attempt to gag the church.”

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