Marriage Licenses: ‘FG Will Hear From Us’ – CAN

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has promised to issue a robust response to the Federal Government’s resolve that worship centers must possess valid licenses to be able to conduct legally recognized marriages in the country.

Speaking in a phone interview with THE WHISTLER, the Special Assistant on Media and Communications to the CAN President, Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, confirmed that the Christian body is opposed to the government’s stance.

Pastor Oladeji said CAN will issue a press statement on their opposition to the government’s directive on licensing of worship centers.

The government had recently said unless worship centers are licensed by the Ministry of Interior, marriages conducted by such institutions “cannot serve legal purposes when the need arises”.

This was made known by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Georgina Ehuriah, who also noted that worship centers must renew their licenses to continue conduct legally recognized marriages.

“Presently, only about 4,689 licensed places of worship in Nigeria have updated their records with the Ministry of Interior of which only 314 have renewed their licences to conduct statutory marriages.”

“The implication of this is that marriages conducted in unlicensed places of worship are not in line with the Marriage Act and cannot serve legal purposes when the need arises and such unlicensed places of worship are operating contrary to Section 6(1) of the Marriage Act,” Ehuriah had said at a stakeholders’ conference on last week Wednesday.

Also, Mr. Steve Okon, who is the Director of Citizenship and Business in the Federal Ministry of Interior, had been quoted by Premium Times as saying worship centers would have to renew their licenses every two years at the cost of N30,000.

Okon also said worship centers will be licensed individually as two or more institutions would not be allowed to share the same license.

CAN had in an initial reaction by its Legal Adviser, Samuel Kwamkur, said the government has “an ulterior motive” by mandating religious institutions to renew their licenses every two years to be able to conduct legally recognized marriages.

“As a Church, we cannot be bound by what they are saying,” Kwamkur had told Punch.