Between the Pastor and the General Overseer: Nigeria’s moral burden

THE past week has not been a fine one for the rightwing Pentecostal Christian movement in Nigeria. And by extension, the moral burden of Nigeria’s  ruling class and all our compatriots who swear loyalty to these two sets in our nation’s firmament, also got heavier.

Almost as if coordinated, two heavy scandals fell on the laps of two of the most notable representatives of rightwing Pentecostalism that have shaken their sureties in the most profound manner, exposing the serious moral dilemma associated with the scandals of the past couple of days. Early last week the report broke that two unnamed Nigerians and an Israeli security contractor based in Abuja, were held in South Africa, for attempting to illegally import into South Africa the sum of $9. 3million in cash.

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome; Ayo Oritsejafor; Enoch Adeboye; David Oyedepo and Mike Okonkwo

The said sum of money was allegedly packed in three suitcases and had been ferried into South Africa in a Bombadier Challenger 600 aircraft. It turned out that the plane in question belonged to the National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor. It is not only the prominent position that he occupies as the leader of Christendom in Nigeria that was brought under sharp focus as a result of the embarrassing story from South Africa, but his place as the expression of Aso Villa-at-prayer or more explicitly, the religious arm of the Jonathan presidency, added fuel to the scandal.

By Wednesday last week, a thoroughly compromised Nigerian government sloppily announced to their South African counterparts that the seized money was to procure arms on behalf of the Nigerian security services. It seemed that the South Africans were not convinced by the explanation with their authorities being quoted as saying the explanations were “flawed and riddled with discrepancies”.

Consequently, the Asset Forfeiture Unit of the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) of South Africa obtained a court order to freeze the money, because the illegal importation had breached the country’s laws that dealt with transfer of foreign exchange of such proportion.

The NPA further showed that Tier One Services Group, the company that the Nigerian government claimed to be procuring arms from, was neither authorized to sell nor rent military hardware. The Nigerian government’s explanation was hogwash! Tier One Services Group apparently issued an invoice to a Cyprus-based company, ESD International Group Ltd., in respect of the procurement of armaments and helicopters for delivery to Nigeria.

But South African investigators said the time the invoice was prepared and the time money was brought into their country “threw up some serious issues of intent”, according to VANGUARD newspaper of September 18, 2014.

Nigeria’s image was brought to an all-time low by the incident but people seemed more shocked by the connection of the CAN President, Pastor Oritsejafor, with the episode, no matter how tangentially, and despite his denial and the spirited defence of his position by some commentators. In a statement, signed on his behalf, by one Bayo Adewoye, it was stated that “we can confirm that he holds an interest in Eagle Air Company, the aircraft in question is not operated by Pastor Oritsejafor”. It added further that: “the aircraft has been leased to and is operated by Green Coast Produce Limited”. What is conveniently forgotten here was that when faceless members of his church donated the aircraft to him, Oritsejafor had stated that it was for the purpose of doing God’s work.

But the lease out of the plane didn’t resemble anything spiritual; pardon my ignorance of these matters, but it appeared more like the service of mammon: at least in the moment that it was caught ferrying money illegally into South Africa. And when efforts have been made to excuse the illegality, what came to mind is the level of outrage that would have been deliberately generated, if the plane had belonged to the Sultan of Sokoto, and two Northern Muslims and a Saudi citizen (for example!) had been caught ferrying such sums around the world! Those who have defended Pastor Oritsejafor, like Femi Fani-Kayode, would have ratcheted up anti-Northern and anti-Muslim hysteria, while calling for the breakup of Nigeria, as he regularly does!

And to show the level of ruling class irresponsibility, the House of Representatives could not even probe the issue, when it sat on Tuesday this week. A voice vote was enough to kill the plan to examine the scandal. The “Honourable” members preferred that Nigeria was smeared and brought to disrepute abroad, than the truth of the situation be brought out in the open. The individuals caught up in the illegality are far more important than Nigeria!

The mess is even more criminally obvious in the culpability associated with the collapse of  a building in Lagos, that belonged to Senior Pastor TB Joshua’s Synagogue Church of All Nations. As I write these lines on Tuesday night, the death toll has climbed up to 115 people. South African President, Jacob Zuma, in response to the tragedy, told his grieving country that: “Not in the recent history of our country have we had this large number of our people die in one incident outside the country”.

South Africa’s SUNDAY TIMES newspaper of September 21, 2014, incredibly reported how chaos, incompetence, lies and the refusal of Pastor TB Joshua’s church and the Nigerian authorities to cooperate in the rescue attempt, all conspired to deepen the tragedy.

While TB Joshua preferred to tell the absurd story of a mystery plane which hovered over the building and the story took a more bizarre turn, with allegations of an attack by Boko Haram, the authorities in Lagos state, through the Commissioner for Physical Planning, Toyin Ayinde, had revealed that the 5-storey building had no government approval for its construction. Similarly, Ibrahim Farinloye, of NEMA, pointed out, that church officials prevented rescuers from accessing the church: “some of us were even attacked (by church members)”. The church members were also hostile to journalists and smashed at least one television camera.

Farinloye was quoted by SA’s SUNDAY TIMES as saying that rescuers lost the two or three critical hours immediately after a disaster when most lives are saved.

It was amazing that two days after the collapse and with casualties mounting, TB Joshua was telling the congregation on Sunday that: “they were trying to scare you from coming to this church. Don’t be scared, you are not the target, I am the target. I know my hour has not yet come”. As the report added, it took him 30 minutes into the televised sermon, before he mentioned the dead!

And to underline TB Joshua’s far-reaching influence, the Lagos state governor who visited the church, disappeared through a backdoor, in order to avoid the media.

Similarly, President Goodluck Jonathan, with an eye on the 2015 elections, visited TB Joshua at the weekend. It was more important to be on TB Joshua’s side than to demand justice for the 115 people who died as the tragic episode was shrouded in mumbo-jumbo, about a “mysterious plane hovering” and an alleged Boko Haram attack.

This is the sorry pass that our country has been taken today, by an alliance of obscurantism; a coterie of rightwing religious bodies and their incredibly rich pastors, primates, overseers (as we have seen in these two different but interrelated scandals) and our irresponsible and unpatriotic ruling elite!

This alliance resides at the lowest moral depth of society, because on the one hand, the rightwing nonspecialists exploit a genuine spiritual need amongst Nigerians, who are caught up in the soulless world of neoliberal capitalist uncertainty inhabited by the demons and principalities of poverty, underdevelopment, insecurities, violence and economic deprivation. On the other hand, they are in cahoots with a ruling elite whose choices have largely fostered the hopelessness that the Pentecostal denizens exploit.

They are the two sides of oppression for the Nigerian people and so need and reinforce each other constantly and therefore carry the same moral burdens. It should therefore not surprise us, if the lives lost at General Overseer, TB Joshua’s Synagogue Church of All Nations, end up counting for nothing and never find justice; just as they are spiritedly sweeping under the carpet, the illegal ferrying of $9.3million in Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor’s plane.

These are scared cows living above the laws of the land; furthermore, they are friends of President Goodluck Jonathan and will shortly be expected to carry out important spiritual assignments, for Jonathan’s 2015 re-election project. That is why they DON’T GIVE A DAMN that lives were lost or monies were illegally exported from Nigeria!

The Scotland referendum

I STAYED awake all-night last Thursday, watching the returns of the Scottish Referendum. It attracted worldwide interest, because what was on the line was the 300-year old union that is the United Kingdom.

It is true that for the two years leading to the referendum, most polls had predicted that the NO votes would prevail. But in the two weeks before the vote, a SUNDAY TIMES poll in London had put the YES vote ahead, for the first time. And alarm bells were pressed within the political circles of the United Kingdom. The SUNDAY TIMES is owned by Rupert Murdoch, the rightwing media mogul, who has an axe to grind with the British establishment in London.

He had openly supported the YES vote for Scottish Independence. The final days led to the most feverish political maneuver as both sides made a desperate effort to woo those who had not committed one way or the other.

The Scottish Referendum caught the imagination of the world, because the outcome, especially if the YES vote had prevailed, would have had far-reaching consequences for many countries around the world. A YES victory would have strengthened secessionist forces around the world. In Nigeria, the open and closet secessionists would have become emboldened and there was no gainsaying the fact that they would have stepped up their agitation into the future, presenting such Scottish outcome as a vindication of their platform.

It was the same attitude that was ratcheted up, when South Sudan broke from a united Republic of Sudan, until the tragic civil war, premised upon the vicious ethnic rivalries and leadership irresponsibility, gave them the pause around the continent.

I was very delighted that the NO votes prevailed in Scotland, just as I was happy that there would be newer constitutional tinkering to devolve greater autonomy within the United Kingdom. Similarly, the fact that the issue was resolved democratically, spoke for the deepening of democracy around the world, but in Nigeria in particular. A united United Kingdom speaks for unity in our country, badly governed now, but with incredible possibilities for liberation and development, into the future.

$9.3m arms deal: Catholic Bishops exonerate Oritsejafor

ABUJA – CATHOLIC Church, weekend, described as malicious and misleading, a media report that the Church chided the President of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor over the 9.3million arms deal in South Africa.

Some Nigerian Newspapers had on Thursday 25th September 2014, and suggesting that Most Rev. Ignatius Ayau Kaigama, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) accused Pastor Ayo Ortistejafor of denting the image of the Christian Association of Nigeria over the case of the jet that was found with $9.3milion allegedly owned by the CAN President.

Oritsejafor and wife

Reacting to this in a statement in Abuja, the Director (Social Communications Directorate), Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria Rev. Fr. Chris Anyanwu said “the report is not only false and malicious but a calculated attempt to further sow the seed of disharmony between Catholics and the leadership of CAN.

“While we disassociate ourselves from the newspaper reports, it is important to put the records in the right perspective.

The statement explained that Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama granted an interview with the Hausa BBC Service in Kaduna in which he condemned money laundering.

It added that Kaigama never, in the said interview, cast any aspersion on the person of Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), but called for dispassionate investigation into the matter.

According to Anyanwu, “Reporters who monitored the said interview in Hausa BBC Service totally misrepresented the Archbishop by misquoting him.

” Knowing the person of Archbishop Kaigama as a man who is committed to ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue, there is no way he can make such an inflammatory statement against the leadership of CAN which is capable of causing dissections among the CAN family.

“It was amazing to read such sensational headlines as ‘Ayo Oritsejafor is disgracing CAN’ – Catholic Bishops of Nigeria’, ‘Oritsejafor has dragged Christianity to the mud – Bishop Kaigama’, ‘Bishop blasts Oritsejafor for playing politics with CAN’.

The statement explained that “This is unfortunate, inciteful, unpatriotic and uncharitable. It looks like some people have problems with the person of Pastor Oritsejafor and wanted as the saying goes ‘to borrow the mouth of Archbishop Kaigama to chop their onions’.

“It appears that some people are hell-bent on setting the Catholic Church against the rest of CAN. Some want to use unfortunate situations to promote their fortunes.

“Yes the Catholic Bishops did in the past make their observations about how CAN could be run better not with the intention to discredit the body but so that things could be corrected fraternally, but there were screaming headlines which tended to put the Catholic Church in negative light. This is happening again.

“We are indeed embarrassed at the monumental scale of misrepresentations in the said newspaper reports. What we expect from Journalists is genuine reports based on truth and facts, which ought to promote public trust and confidence.

“A hall mark of responsible journalism is that reporters ought to cross-check their facts before publishing them whereas reports based on falsehood, rumours and preconceived ideas such as this, are not only malicious but a calculated attempt to strain the good relationship between the Catholic Church and the leadership of CAN.

“There is a poison of deliberate misinformation in the air, more deadly than the Ebola virus disease. This may be a symptom of how forthcoming political events may be handled in the media. Some persons want to at all cost see the North and the South, Christians and Muslims fight.

“In God’s name it shall not come to be. Our prayer is that our nation shall remain one and indivisible. No matter how hard our detractors may try, they will not succeed.

“As leaders of the Catholic Church we shall continue to be objective in our assessment of the situation in the country and endeavour to edify by our comments and actions and not to destroy. This is because we believe that we are one people and one nation. God bless our beloved country Nigeria.”

Troops repel Boko Haram attack on Borno town

Troops have on Thursday repelled what would have been a major attack on Benesheik town by suspected members of the Boko Haram.

It was gathered that the insurgents first blocked the highway with the intent of killing unsuspecting passengers but security operatives engaged them in fierce exchange of gunfire.

It was not clear if the attackers succeeded in killing anybody.

Mallam Hussaini Musa, a civil servant who passed through Beneshiek along Maiduguri Damaturu road yesterday said he saw five corpses dumped by the roadside which witnesses said are those of the Boko Haram insurgents.

“From what I leant, soldiers from the outskirt of Beneshiek and others from Auno intervened and averted what would have been a major onslaught,” he said.

In the past, many people have been killed by Boko Haram insurgents at Beneshiek while dozens of houses, the Council secretariat and other public and private estates buildings have been destroyed

Terrorism: 1,200 Nigerian security personnel leave for Russia

About 1,200 Nigerian security personnel including members of the Armed Forces, the police and members of the Department of State Services, DSS, have so far left Abuja for anti-insurgent training in Russia.

Their departure for training as Special Forces, security sources said, followed alleged snub or  nonchalant attitude of both the United Kingdom and United States towards Nigeria in her fight against Boko Harm terrorists.

Saturday Vanguard gathered that 400 security personnel left the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport in a chattered aircraft at about 5pm weekend, accompanied by top security officers as well as Russian instructors who had been in the country to part of the initial selection process for the officers and men that would take part in the training.

It was further revealed that two other batches of 400 troops each had earlier departed for the training, bringing the total number of officers so far to about 1,200.

Saturday Vanguard had exclusively reported that following the dithering of the some western nations especially, notably Britain and the United States of America over the training of Nigerian security personnel to confront the Boko Haram insurgents, the Federal Government had decided to turn to Russia to meet some of its immediate security needs pending the resolution of the diplomatic difference between Nigeria and the two Western countries.

According to sources the latest batch of Nigerian security personnel are joining three batches of their colleagues who had left for training in Russia earlier this year.

The last group would be in Russia for four months before returning to the countryearly next year to form a nucleus of the Special Forces Brigade to be set up by the country.

A similar scenerio played out when Nigeria faced sanctions following the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential elections won by the late Moshood Abiola by the then Military  government led by late General Sani Abacha as the Federal Government turned to China and India for its miltary needs.

The emerging scenario in the fight against terror and the steps Nigeria’s government has taken would have resulted in global sensation during the cold war as the West would have fought to keep her allies to the then Soviet Union as now represented by Russia which has, although, embraced free market economy.

Nigeria, for years, enjoyed close ties with the West and was seen as a US ally. But the seeming nonchalant attitude towards it by its traditional allies has reportedly compelled the country to turn to Russia and China for the training of its military as well as acquisition of military hardware to fight Boko Haram.

However, highly placed military and intelligence sources told Saturday Vanguard in Abuja that the decision to turn to the other two world military powers was an interim measure to roll back the advances made by the Boko Haram insurgents who have gained some grounds in seizing and controlling some towns and villages in the north eastern states of Borno and Adamawa before the latest defeat suffered by the insurgents in the last two weeks due to the increased performance of Nigerian troops, leading to the killing of the insurgents leader, Abubakar Shekau.

Following the increasing sophistication of the tactics employed by the Boko Haram terrorists, the Nigerian government had reportedly approached both the US and British governments to procure arms for its armed forces in order to effectively counter the insurgents but the two governments continued to dither, a situation that might have been responsible for some of the gains recorded by terrorists in recent times.

A senior security official told Saturday Vanguard: “the United States and Britain appear unwilling to provide arms to our armed forces. It is surprising because these are two friendly countries to Nigeria which is under threat from terrorists. We have no option but to look somewhere else for our needs pending when the issues are resolved at the diplomatic level by our government.”

However, Russia which has always been willing to supply weapons and some other logistics to Nigeria when other western countries are not forthcoming readily accepted the Nigerian proposal as the Nigeria Air Force, NAF, has several Russian fighter jets in its fleet.

Already, Nigeria has entered into contract with Russian arms manufacturers for the supply of high calibre weapons to the Nigerian Army to combat the insurgents in the North east and has also begun discussion with the Israeli government on possible supply of military hardware.

“When the Chief of Army staff said recently that the Nigerian army would soon take possession of weapons that would reverse the trend in the North east, he was referring to the deal between Nigeria and some Russian arms manufacturers. We are also in discussion with Israeli companies. We don’t want to be held ransom by our traditional allies. That is why we are expanding our sources of supply,” the source said.

culled from vanguard

One killed, many injured as another building collapses in Anambra

One person was killed and about 20 others sustained injuries when a three-storey building under construction collapsed at Eziora village, Adazi-Ani in Anaocha local council area of Anambra yesterday.

The building, jointly owned by Mr. Uche Okeke and his five siblings who are children of the transport magnet, Chief GU Okeke, was at the completion stage when it collapsed.

It was gathered that over 25 persons were working on the site when the incident occurred and at the time of filing this report, one person was still trapped under the rubble.

Okeke, who spoke to reporters said: “It is a sad thing and we are still confused over the incident because we awarded the contract over a year ago to a professional. We have spent millions of naira on the project and we were not in doubt that quality materials were used in the construction.

“One worker was still trapped and we immediately ordered for earth moving equipment from Onitsha to remove the rubbles to save his life.

“We reported to the Police immediately and they helped us in the rescue mission. Unfortunately, the man under the rubble died before he could be rescued.”

According to him, the body of the deceased had been deposited at St. Joseph’s Hospital mortuary at Adazi-Nnukwu.

One of the labourers, who identified himself as Mr. Olisa Obaze, said he broke his knee cap in an attempt to jump down from the three-storey building.

He said: “We were carrying blocks upstairs when we suddenly heard a large crack sound. We scampered for safety and I had to jump from the three-storey building. After the incident, we started calling on our members and realized that one man was still under the debris.”

culled from vanguard

How other men of God see TB Joshua

Prophet TB Joshua of Synagogue Church of All Nations is no stranger to controversies and condemnations. Since his emergence as a man of God to whom many run for deliverance, salvation and miracles, the supposed man of God has had to fight off other men of God who see him as nothing but fake.

Perhaps, the most antagonistic among them all is Reverend Chris Okotie of the Household of God who once described the Prophet as the vicar of the devil on earth. Okotie has no mixed feelings about T.B Joshua. To him, the so-called man of God at Synagogue Church of All Nations shouldn’t be associated with because, according to him, he is in partnership with Satan to subjugate the church to the will of the devil.

TB Joshua

Okotie’s aversion to everything T.B Joshua stands for became more evident sometime ago when a video showed T.B Joshua and Pastor Chris Oyakhilome purportedly praying for a man on wheelchair.

Pastor Chris Okotie made a number of public comments to Nigerian newspapers and other media sources expressing displeasure that the respected Pastor Chris Oyakilhome started fraternising with TB Joshua.

In one of his media comments, Okotie alleged that T.B. Joshua was a practitioner of an occult science called Docetic Gnosticism and Cerinthian heresy. Docetic Gnosticism, according to Wikipaedia was an ancient Greek spiritual belief system during A.D. 70 through A.D. 100.This particular group asserted that Jesus Christ did not rise physically from the grave as foretold by the Old Testament prophets, eye-witnessed by the apostles and recorded in scripture. This teaching is the biblical definition of false prophecy – the teaching that Christ did not rise physically from the grave.

Cerinthus was a Greek heretic (A.D. 100) who denied the divinity of Jesus Christ. According to Cerinthus, Jesus Christ was not born of a virgin as scripture plainly declares. Cerinthus also believed that during the future millennial reign of Christ inhabitants of the earth would be in bondage to certain lust.

Okotie has also ascribed the acclaimed healing power of TB Joshua to the practice of an ancient Asian yoga-like sorcery called Shamanism, a practice, according to Wikipeadia, that involves a practitioner reaching altered states of consciousness in order to encounter and interact with the spirit world and channel these transcendental energies into this world. A shaman is a person regarded as having access to, and influence in, the world of benevolent and malevolent spirits, who typically enters into a trance state during a ritual, and practices divination and healing.

Evidences abound that worshipers at Synagogue revere and and adulate the name of T.B Joshua by calling him ‘Emmanuel’ (God with us). To this, Chris Okotie stated emphatically: “‘He (T.B Joshua) has three symbols of mysticism. The first is called “The Head of Jesus Christ” or “Christ”. This is a reference to the source of his power. That power is invoked or acknowledged by the word, “Emmanuel.” When “Emmanuel” is chanted, it energizes’ the power. The scriptures say that the head of Christ is God. So when Joshua ‘refers to that head, he is speaking of himself as God Incarnate.’

At the height of the Joshua-Okotie-Oyakhilome imbroglio, other Pentecostal pastors warned T.B Joshua not to parade himself as a Pentecostal preacher.

“He is an occultist,” says Anselm Modubuku, pastor of the Revival Assembly Church in Lagos. “Joshua claims he was born again in his mother’s womb. It is tragic that Spirit-filled people are led astray by him.”

“It is puzzling why Americans are drawn to him,” said Ayo Oritsejafor, pastor of Word of Life Bible Church in Warri and now President of Christian Association of God, CAN. “Where and when did he get saved? Who is his pastor? That is what I would like to know.”

The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, headed by Bishop Mike Okonkwo, denounced Joshua as an imposter in a statement. It said the group had for years warned of “the dangers of infiltrators who have modernized cultism by injecting the name of Jesus Christ into their largely unbiblical practices. It is necessary that we reiterate this position that the Synagogue (of All Nations) falls into this category.”

All that notwithstanding, hundreds of thousands still revere him. To those thousands who seek T.B Joshua for spiritual help, the Okoties and Mike Okonkwos of this world are entitled to their opinions. To them, the man TB Joshua is a king who is not recognised in his place. He is a true man of God who heals the sick, delivers people from spiritual attacks and is ever generous to the indigent. His healing power is largely responsible for the thousands who flock into his church especially from abroad. Hence Joshua is more recognised outside than in Nigeria.

My experience at Synagogue – Jacques Pauw,South African journalist

A renowned South African investigative journalist, Jacques Pauw writes on his experience at Synagogue.

I was making a TV documentary and my challenge to Joshua was straightforward: allow me to film how you heal Basson (a 25 year old Springbok rugby player who was dying of liver cancer and went to Prophet T.B Joshua for healing). If you succeed, I promise I will show it to the world.

When we arrived at Joshua’s compound, the TV team and I were in effect incarcerated. For two weeks, we were forbidden to leave the grounds.

We were told we could not drink or smoke, and had to attend services and events with the pilgrims. While I stayed in a dormitory with other pilgrims, Basson and his mother set up camp in a private room.

The church took away the young man’s morphine and pain pills.

During our first interview, a softly spoken, affable Joshua said it would be easy to heal Wium because he had nothing but a “little sore” on his liver.

At Sunday sermons, the afflicted lined up with placards stating what condition they needed healed. There were lines of people seeking a cure for HIV/Aids, cancer and heart conditions, business failures, wandering spouses and dull brains.

A festive, almost joyous atmosphere filled the compound as churchgoers sang, clapped and danced. Evil spirits were cast out and those set free by the Prophet writhed in the dirt while vomiting out the demons. Joshua prayed for every person in the line and declared them all healed. He ordered them to stop using any medication and trust in God. Among the pilgrims was Capetonian John Rindel, who was suffering from full-blown AIDS and already had dementia.

He had arrived at the church several weeks before we did, was prayed for by Joshua and declared completely healed.

He had stopped taking his medicine and showed remarkable improvement.

Scientists refer to this as the “placebo effect” of faith healing. A patient can experience genuine pain relief and other symptomatic alleviation after being prayed for. The relief is short-lived and the patient soon returns to his original condition.

On my request, Rindel agreed to go for two independent HIV/Aids tests when he returned to South Africa. Both showed he was still positive. He died a short while later.

The BBC recently investigated the London branch of the church and reported that three women had died after being “healed” and told to stop taking their HIV/Aids medication.

I challenged the pilgrims to provide me with medical proof that they had been healed. None did. Ruben Kruger died in 2010 just before his 40th birthday.

TB Joshua is a true man of God, not an ordinary person  —Journalist

Mr Oye Ogunwale worked in Vanguard as a sub editor for more than a decade before he moved on.

He was very close to T.B Joshua and had this to say about the man:

T.B Joshua is authentic. He is real. I can assure you of that. He is a true man of God. Don’t mind what Nigerians say about him. He performs miracles. I know that some people claim that he is not genuine because they were not healed by the man.

It all depends on faith. Again, it also depends on the sins the miracle seekers committed. Who knows what they have done against humanity that God may want them to go through more penance. Joshua heals people, I can tell you authoritatively. He heals HIV.

I know about 20 HIV victims that he has healed. If you go there you will know that he heals about ten of them in a week. I know of a top man in government whom he delivered from HIV infection.

The man returned with a car as gift. T.B Joshua asked him to take back the car, that he didn’t want it. He only asked him to go, and sin no more. T.B Joshua is like Obafemi Awolowo who was not generally recognised as a great leader until he died. Awo was never given his real value until he died.

Nigeria is like that. Look at Zik. He is another great example. I was close to T.B Joshua for more than 10 years and I can attest to his genuineness as a man of God. If he is not real foreigners will not be going there. Many of his disciples are foreigners. He heals people at the church there or he visits them in their homes to heal them.”

The reporter, at this juncture cuts in to ask “so T.B Joshua visits people in their homes to heal them?”

Oye Ogunwale responds this way: “Yes, he visits them spiritually. He goes to their houses in spirit and heals them.”

How would a sick man in his house know that TB Joshua was the one that healed him”, the reporter asked.

“He would know,” Ogunwale insists, his voice rising. “He will see the man in his dream. And if it’s surgery, for example, he may see spots of blood on his bed or signs that healing has been done. The sick person will know that healing has taken place.

T.B Joshua visits people spiritually and heals them. The patient will see him in a dream. T.B Joshua is not an ordinary man. He can also transfer power to an ordinary person and that person will perform healing. During healing hours, he may touch any person in the congregation and tell that person to come up and heal this man or that man and healing will actually take place when that ordinary person acts as he directs. It is amazing. Heads of States go there.

The former President of Zambia who was always going there said that Africa didn’t know what they have in Joshua and that if T.B Joshua were a white man the whole world will recognise him. He could not believe his eyes when he saw how people were being healed. T.B Joshua is not an ordinary man.

The only thing is that when you go there it may take you days to see him. This, I attribute to the Nigerian factor. When I was in Vanguard, one of the gate men approached me one day and told me that his wife was sick and everything indicated she had cancer. He wanted me to help him with some money.

I told him I didn’t have money but that I could take him and his wife to a man who could help cure his wife. They agreed and I took them to TB Joshua and the woman was healed. An Army General from Ghana once came on wheelchair and on the day of healing he told him to get up and walk. The man got up and staggered and the man of God touched him with his leg and the he stood. Few seconds later he was firm and even ran.

There was applause. The was paralysed from the waist but he walked after T.B Joshu’s touch. T.B Joshua is too much but Nigerians blackmail him a lot. I’m a direct witness to all these things. During service, he would ask witches and wizards to step out and will ask them to reveal their powers. You can’t believe the revelations that come from them and the things that they have done in the past. Unbelievable.

Then you will see him deliver them. He is a powerful man. For a man of God to call somebody from the audience, touch him and transfer power to him and ask him to heal another person and it happens, you should know that such a man is not an ordinary man. And he is very generous. He heals people and still gives them alms. Can you beat that? That’s what I can tell you about T.B Joshua and you can quote me.”

source: vanguard