The initiative that gave birth to the Isoko Clergy Association of North America (ICANA) started in September 15, 2012 during Bishop Emmanuel Omasere’s Church third year anniversary. Apostle Dr. David Jebba, an Isoko minister from Nigeria was the invited guest speaker. Apostle Jebba happens to be the International President of Isoko Christian Association of Nigeria (ICAN) and from a meeting with him during that visit, he informed Bishop Omasere about our late Father; Archbishop Dr. Christian Aggrey Apena’s mandate on him to establish Isoko Pastor’s fellowship in North America. He sought my support to pioneer the association by seeking some of the Isoko pastors resident in North America and share the vision with them and plan on how to inaugurate the association.

The goal of this association was to bring all Isoko sons and daughters in ministry together and be of support to one another and also to those in the home land, and how to better bring a spiritual transformation to Isoko land. After Apostle David Jebba’s return to Nigeria, he talked with Papa Apena who then spoke to me over the Phone and without hesitation I agreed to the vision and started reaching out to make the necessary contacts. Pastor Philip Okweni was one of the very first pastors who bought into the vision and worked alongside me to bring others into the fellowship. The association was inaugurated in September 2017 by the Late Archbishop C.A.O Apena who personally made the sacrifice of travelling to Texas for the official inauguration, and since then the association has waxed stronger and stronger.

We had our first Isoko clergy pastor’s conference in Dallas Texas in 2018, the second in Longview Texas in 2021 and the 3rd in Antioch, California in 2023. To God be all the glory for helping the organization to keep up together strong till date and still counting. May God continue to keep members of this association and fellowship together so that with combine strength of more, we can win our world especially our Isoko mother land back to God In Jesus name. God bless you.

By Bishop Dr. Emmanuel Omasere, (President 2017-2023) & Pastor Philip Okweni (General Secretary 2017-2023).