After 14 years of forced silence, the doors of Jatutu Memorial Cathedral in Jalingo, Taraba State, have swung open again, following a court ruling that struck out a suit seeking to prevent the resumption of worship at the United Methodist Church Nigeria cathedral.
The Upper Area Court in Jalingo delivered the decisive ruling this week, setting aside an earlier interim order that had restrained church activities and ordering the plaintiff to pay costs of N1 million.
For over a decade, the cathedral’s pews gathered dust while its towering structure stood as a daily reminder of a bitter division within the Methodist fold in the state capital.
That chapter, it appears, has now closed, at least for now.
The suit was filed by Reverend Philip Audu on behalf of the Global Methodist Church Nigeria, seeking to halt activities at the cathedral following a Taraba State Government directive ordering its reopening after reconciliation efforts between the two disputing factions.
Listed as the lead defendant was Bishop Ande Emmanuel, who serves as Bishop of UMC Nigeria and the Districts of Senegal and Cameroon, alongside five other UMC Nigeria pastors.
The case, however, did not survive its first legal test as
Counsel to UMCN, Ibrahim Effiong, challenged the suit on grounds of jurisdiction, arguing that the plaintiff lacked the legal standing, known in law as locus standi, to sue in a personal capacity on behalf of an institution.
He further described the filing as an abuse of court process.
Presiding Judge Barkindo Chiroma agreed, holding that the plaintiff lacked legal standing and that the matter constituted an abuse of court process.
The suit was struck out, the interim restraining order was set aside, and the complainant was directed to pay N1 million in costs.
Speaking to journalists after the ruling, Bishop Emmanuel adopted a conciliatory tone, distancing himself from any triumphalism.
“It is not my intention to be in court; my work is in the church. But my brethren have chosen to bring me here, despite my insistence to resolve these things amicably,” he said.
He urged members to remain peaceful and law abiding, stressing that UMCN remained open to dialogue over prolonged litigation.
The Chancellor of UMC Nigeria, Benjamin Panya, described the judgment as both a relief and a reassurance.
“The judiciary remains the hope of the ordinary citizen,” he said.
The GMCN, however, was quick to reject the ruling, vowing to challenge it at the Court of Appeal.
At a press conference shortly after the judgment, GMCN Bishop Rev. John Pena, represented by Bazel Yoila, Conference Superintendent of the Southern Nigeria Annual Conference, described the ruling as unjust.
The leadership called on state and federal authorities to take interest in what they termed a grave injustice against their church, while urging their members to remain calm and law abiding pending an appellate review.
The closure of Jatutu Memorial Cathedral had stretched across 14 years, rooted in escalating tensions over ownership and control, a conflict that mirrored broader denominational realignments within global Methodism.
For residents of Jalingo, the cathedral’s prolonged shutdown had long become symbolic: a house of God ensnared in legal and theological crosscurrents, its gates shut even as the faithful waited.
With church activities now fully resumed, the immediate battle has been won by UMCN. Whether the war is over, however, may depend on what happens next at the Court of Appeal.