By Terna Chikpa, Jalingo
The Upper Area Court II sitting in Jalingo on Tuesday struck out a suit instituted by the Global Methodist Church of Nigeria (GMCN) against the United Methodist Church of Nigeria (UMCN) over the ownership of a church property in Jalingo, Taraba State.
The court also awarded a cost of N1 million against the plaintiff.
Presiding Judge, Barkindo Idris Chiloma, struck out the matter on the grounds of lack of locus standi, lack of jurisdiction, and abuse of court process.
The court held that the subject matter, which relates to land in an urban area, was outside its jurisdiction. It consequently awarded N1,000,000 in favour of the defendant.
Reacting to the judgment, Bishop Emmanuel Ande of the UMCN described it as “a victory for the return of peace in Taraba State.”
“Today’s judgment is a victory for the return of peace in Taraba. It will restore peace between the two warring parties, the UMCN and GMCN. I call on members of GMCN to come to the dialogue table with UMCN rather than resorting to court.
“We have opened the long-closed Jatutu Memorial Cathedral, where the reconciliation service will be held. We call on Tarabans to attend the reconciliation service of the UMCN, scheduled for February 22, 2026,” Bishop Ande said.
However, the Global Methodist Church of Nigeria (GMCN) has rejected the decision of the lower court and vowed to seek redress at the Court of Appeal.
Rev. John Pena, the GMCN Bishop, while reacting during a press conference, said the church would appeal the judgment to seek further clarification.
The Bishop, who was represented by the Conference Superintendent of the Southern Nigeria Annual Conference, Bazel Yoila, called on both the state and federal governments to be concerned about what he described as injustice meted out to GMCN.
He, however, urged members to remain calm and law-abiding citizens of Nigeria.
