CHRISTIAN leaders across the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory have formally adopted a new identity, announcing the Forum of Northern Christians (FNC).
Also referred to as the Northern Christian Association, the new name is intended to better define the group’s regional mandate while maintaining allegiance to the national umbrella body, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).
The decision was reached during a stakeholders’ meeting in Kaduna involving state chairmen, secretaries, and representatives of youth and women wings from across the North.
The gathering also coincided with the first anniversary in office of the northern chairman, Rev. Joseph Hayab.
Previously known as Northern CAN, the leaders said the former description often led to misconceptions about its relationship with the national structure.
Addressing journalists, Hayab explained that the move was not a breakaway but a restoration of historical identity.
He traced the group’s origin to 1964 in Kaduna when it operated as the Northern Christian Association before it evolved into the national body in 1976.
According to him, reviving the original name affirms its roots while preserving full loyalty to CAN under its president, Daniel Okoh.
“We are CAN. We are Christians, and we remain members of CAN,” Hayab said, stressing that the Forum simply seeks clearer regional identification when addressing issues affecting Christians in Northern Nigeria.
He added that the exclusion of “Nigeria” from the new name was deliberate, aimed at avoiding confusion with the national body and showing respect for the parent organisation.
The Forum has since been formally registered and incorporated as the Forum of Northern Christians and the FCT.
Hayab outlined priority areas for the body, including religious freedom, access to education, shortages of Christian Religious Knowledge teachers, and what he described as limited admission opportunities for Christian children in some northern states.
He said the overarching goal is to promote equal citizenship, fairness, and opportunity.
Providing further historical context, Samuel Salifu, identified as the first General Secretary of Northern CAN, recalled that the association established in 1964 later became the national Christian umbrella body in 1976 during the military administration of Olusegun Obasanjo.
He noted that the late Interior Minister, Shehu Shagari, formalised its registration at the time.
Salifu said the latest change was prompted largely by the mistaken belief that the northern body operated separately from CAN.
“There was never a Northern CAN as a separate entity from CAN,” he stated, adding that the new registration clarifies its standing within the national framework.
Rev. Emmanuel Dziggau described the 1964 formation as a survival response for Christians in the region and urged current leaders to remain committed to justice and equity.
In a virtual address, Yusuf Turaki drew attention to insecurity across Northern Nigeria, citing kidnappings, displacement, and destruction of livelihoods affecting many Christian communities.
He called on the Forum to continue advocating lawful and constitutional measures to safeguard vulnerable groups.
Stakeholders at the meeting reaffirmed their loyalty to the national CAN leadership and pledged sustained collaboration while maintaining a clearly defined regional structure.
They concluded that adopting the Forum of Northern Christians is meant to strengthen clarity of purpose, not create division, underscoring their commitment to justice, equality, and peaceful coexistence within Nigeria’s constitutional framework.
