The General Overseer of Christ The Light Gospel Church Ministry (Inc), Ibadan, Bishop Solomon Aremu has urged Oyo State Government to urgently review the recently installed traffic light at a junction linking the Nigeria Television Authority, (NTA) Agodi Gate to the Total Garden-Goverment House Area.
Speaking in Ibadan at the church headquarters, Aremu said the step becomes necessary to avert accidents that can lead to death within the axis.
Aremu explained he narrowly escaped death on Thursday morning after obeying the NTA Agodi, traffic light.
Aremu, whose ministry is celebrating the 33rd anniversary, urged the State Government to look at the possible ways of averting such crisis in the future.
According to him: “it was just simply by God’s grace that I survived the accident even with my granddaughter sitting beside me.
“If not for the traffic light just installed at the NTA junction, I would had moved a bit forward to see the traffic coming from the Total-Garden end of the road.
“Unknown to me, a trailer was ascending the Total Garden-Gate road and to avoid collusion with the trailer which refused to stop for the traffic light passing the traffic from Total-Garden end of the road hits a Toyota Camry coming from the Govt House route.”
The Cleric, whose Toyota Forerunner was badly damaged, thanked all those that assisted during the incident.
The Foursquare Church has announced the appointment of Dr. Osaren Emokpae as the First National Leader and President of the Foursquare Gospel Church, Trinidad and Tobago and St. Vincent.
The announcement was contained in a statement by Publicity Consultant, Mrs. Abiola Olayand of Mindshare Communications Limited.
She said Emokpae, who is also the Executive Counsellor of Foursquare Nigeria; Founding Pastor, Foursquare Gospel Church Macedonia Assembly, Dallas, USA and Chairman, Wilson Badejo Foundation, has assumed duty to oversee the Foursquare mission in Trinidad and surrounding Islands of that country.
The statement reads: “We are pleased to announce the assumption of duty of Dr. Osaren Emokpae (The Executive Counsellor of Foursquare Nigeria, Founding Pastor Foursquare Gospel Church Macedonia Assembly Dallas USA and Chairman Wilson Badejo foundation) as the New National Leader and President Foursquare Gospel Church- Macedonia Call, Trinidad & Tobago.
“Dr. Emokpae in that position oversees the Foursquare Work in Trinidad and surrounding Islands of that country.”
Pastor Samuel Olubode was also appointed National Secretary/Diaspora Coordinator West Indies while Pastor Turnel Hendrickson was appointed Director of Home Mission, Foursquare Gospel church, Trinidad and Tobago, the statement said.
At the church’s 9th International Missions Conference, which will hold between May 12 and 14, at Port of Spain and Chaquanas, Trinidad and Tobago respectively, the Nigerian High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago, Abubakar Ibrahim and his Deputy Udo Onyi and Emokpae, have been penciled down as speakers at the conference.
“Key Speakers at the 9th International Missions Conference are Rev. Dr. Olu Farombi General Overseer emeritus of Foursquare Nigeria and Rev. Dr. Richard Oloidi, Founding Pastor of Riverdale Foursquare church Atlanta USA,” the statement added.
Administrator and Archdeacon of Christ Church,Amuwo-Odofin Archdeaconry, Diocese of Lagos West, Ven. Oluwafemi Adeniyi Omidiji has said religious leaders have no business interfering in politics because the ‘system is corrupt’.
Omidiji spoke at a briefing to announce activities for the church 10th anniversary which is billed for Sunday, May 7.
He said: “Religious leaders should steer clear of politics. The system is corrupt and they should be careful.
“Although, the church cannot be separated from government. A religious leader must stand for the truth. He must not be one sided. As a leader don’t mess up yourself with politics,no politician is worth dying for. As a a spiritual leader you are more than a governor,or a president.
“Clergymen should not take sides with candidates,they should stand for the truth. Politicians come to us and we pray for them. We also advise those we are close to.”
On the anniversary,he said:” This Archdeaconry was 10 on February 17, 2023 but because of the Lent, it was shifted to May 7.
“We thank for this celebration. Since inception God has done very much for us. We are united here. God has helped us,we are surrounded by good people. It is worth celebrating.
“The journey has been good. The support of people here can never be overemphasised. We have organised alot of programmes since I assumed leadership,” he said.
Omidiji noted that the church is being confronted with many challenges.
“We are facing many challenges.
When it rains, people find it difficult to attend church because of flood.
We urge government to help address the flooding situation in this axis.
Then the traffic situation in Amuwo-Odofin is also not helping matters. Many of our youths also are moving out of the country. But in all,we thank God the church is progressing,” he added.
The Venerable noted that the church remains committed to helping the needy and indigent.
His words: “We give food to people,we pay school fees of students. The church also empowers many youths.”
The Clergyman noted that the church would
continue to evangelise, and minister unto people because it is a light to the entire community.
“We will continue to affect the community positively, establish more churches, make people repent and turn to God and put a shine on humanity,” he said.
Omidiji said tomorrow, May 6, there would be a novelty match between Christ Church /Ang Church Ago and St James/GRA/Okota, while Sunday, May 7, is for thanksgiving and honouring of people.
The Diocesan Bishop of Lagos West, the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Rt. Revd. James Olusola Odedeji, has stated his emergence as the Bishop of the Diocese ten years ago is a product of grace because he never lobbied for the exalted position.
Odedeji, who is also the Supervising Bishop for Lagos Diocese, spoke on the sideline of the one year remembrance service for the Rt. Dr. Peter Adelewa Adebiyi, the former Bishop of the Diocese at the Archbishop Vining memorial Church Cathedral, Ikeja, Lagos.
He said: “Every bishop should be approachable and friendly. After all, there is nothing we have that we have not received from God.
“So, I see myself daily as a product of grace. Because if age were part of the criteria, I will not be sitting here today. But one thing I know is that God has a way of lifting people.”
The outspoken cleric, who was consecrated as Bishop on February 24, 2013 and subsequently enthroned as The Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Lagos West (Anglican Communion) on April 28, 2013, said what gives him more joy is when other people are happy.
“This week is my 10th year anniversary as the Diocesan Bishop, and when I look at the journey so far, I give God all the Glory. Although the journey has not been easy, God has always been with me all the way.
“This is evidence in the many positive steps the Diocese has taken, and it is not limited to my diocese alone, in fact we have touched many lives, and are still reaching out to other dioceses, even across Nigeria.
“Apart from the many projects we have undertaken to enlarge the coast of Lagos West Diocese, we have also empowered over 500 people, paying school fees of many indigent but brilliant youths, also ensuring that we take youths off the streets through the many skill acquisition initiatives.
“I’m happier today. Whenever I go to churches, I see some of these youths that we have empowered and are doing well in their various chosen fields. We thank God for their lives, and intend to do more through various partnerships with Foundations and other well-meaning Nigerians.
“We have also bought an expanse of land. Fully paid for. We call it Clergy City. We encourage all our priests to key into the initiative by buying plots, I also bought, and we’re galvanizing resources around us to actually make it affordable to all our clergymen.
Speaking on late RT. Rev’d Peter Adelewa Adebiyi, Odedeji described him as a good Christian, teacher and spiritual leader who lived a worthy life committed to the service for God and humanity.
“Baba Adebiyi was totally committed to the service of God till he breathed his last at the ripe age of 79. We thank God because this is a celebration of life. He lived in God’s service, an evidence of the grace of God, he imparted many people and helped many to find purpose and meaning.
Dr. Odedeji explained that those who accepted His Son, Jesus Christ, here on earth should not fear death because they have a hope of eternity with God, just as he said the late Bishop Adebiyi gave his life and lived for God, which he said had given him a hope of a hereafter.
Bishop Odedeji also advised the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to see himself as father of the nation by reaching out to every part of the country and also make peace with his opponents in the last presidential election.
“The election has come and gone, and it is time for reconciliation. He has been declared the winner, the next stage is to bring everybody together because there is a huge task ahead, and he can’t do it alone,” he added.
The Evangelical Ark Mission (TEAM) International, one of the fastest growing Nigerian Christian ministries in Asia, celebrated its 17th anniversary at the prestigious multi-million dollar state-of-the-art TEAM Convention Center, Las Piñas City, Philippines recently.
The event, which attracted thousands of church members and dignitaries from all walks of life in the Philippines, was characterised by quality praise and worship sessions with inspirational messages from local and international speakers.
The well-planned and classy two-hour program featured Jasmine Henry, a famous Philippine singer, gospel rap sensation KDJ, Congressman Ron Salo, Mrs Lara Villafuerte, Bishop Ted Malangen, Bishop Ricardo Sio and the guest speaker, Dr Effa Emmanuel, who gave rousing messages.
Others were The National Director of Christian Bishops and Ministers Association of the Philippines (CBMAP), Bishop Rey Santillana and the Presiding Bishop of TEAM, Bishop Tony Marioghae.
In his message, Bishop Marioghae challenged Christians to transform the world through the Spirit of wisdom, revelation and knowledge.
According to the cleric: “Success is not a product of chance but the fruit of deliberate choices, empowered by intentional actions inspired by a purpose-driven lifestyle.”
TEAM is one of the fastest growing and influential churches in the Philippines, with tens of thousands of members and many churches in Asia, Australia, Africa, Europe, America and other parts of the world with a mission to disciple nations, equip leaders in every spectrum of life and transform countless lives.
Tony Marioghae, who is also the international president of the Confederation of African Ministers, Pastors And Churches (CAMPAC) and CBMAP Global Director, respectively, is the first African to hold this position and receives numerous local and national awards in the Philippines and undoubtedly the most influential African preacher in Asia.
He is a best-selling author, international conference speaker, philanthropist, consultant, entrepreneur and adviser to multiple world leaders. He was honoured with the keys to two cities in the Philippines for his numerous contributions to the nation. Bishop Marioghae is married to Dr Ernaida Cuevas-Marioghae, a professor and former consultant to the Philippines House of Representatives, and they have two children.
For Temitope Aigbedion, a graduate of Nikky African Fashion Institute, government seems to be aware of the dangerous trend, as they have now made it mandatory for even undergraduates to take time out to acquire artisanal skills in between their study years.’
It turned out that Temitope Aigbedion, who runs a modest fashion design shop in Oshodi area of Lagos is the only one of the four top artisans spoken to, that had apprentices. She actually has five of them at the moment, but that is not to say she hasn’t experienced the unsavoury trend.
“Of recent, around 2005, there is this decline in apprenticeship. They just don’t want to come in again; it seems parents prefer sending their wards to proper fashion schools, polytechnics or universities. The good thing, however, is they still have to come to proper fashion shops like ours to learn practicals and perfect whatever they had learnt in the fashion schools and tertiary institutions.
One other common trend, Aigbedion remarked, is that “Most of the apprentices don’t wait to graduate properly. Immediately they feel they’ve learnt what they perceive to be enough skills to make some money on their own, they just abscond. You know in the past, apprentices stayed back and served out their years, however competent they may have become. It was their way of paying their masters back. But that is not the case anymore. I have one of such as we speak. I taught her the rudiments of the work, and the moment she had acquired good enough skills, she just took off. The parents came to beg me, saying they would get back to me, but they never came. Interestingly, she has been working and making money. Sometimes, she even comes back to me for assistance and I offer it. Probably because of my Christian faith, I do not hold grudges for long. Besides, she is still my product and my pride.”
Even though she is lucky to have apprentices, Aigbedion, a graduate of Nikky Africana Fashion Institute, which was then affiliated to Yaba College of Technology, said more that 75 percent of her colleagues in the tailoring association she belongs to complain of this same problem of shortage of apprentices.
“Even my next door neighbour, a senior male tailor of tested quality, has no single apprentice.”
Asked why she thinks young people don’t want to learn anymore, Aigbedion smiled and said, “They are learning; I can tell you that for free. You know it is now mandatory for students in our higher institutions to acquire artisenal skills after their year two. You either go for tailoring, hairdressing, or go to learn barbing or computer-related skills. My two daughters in the university went through the process. This is to ensure that these skills do not die, and so that young people can have something to fall back on if they don’t immediately secure their choice jobs after school.”
She also attests to the menace of yahoo yahoo internet scam: “Most of my male colleagues who had male apprentices tell stories of how they all eventually leave to go into yahoo yahoo business, simply because they can’t wait out the duration of the apprenticeship. It is so bad that they even come and greet their masters in a ‘big way’ to show how successful they have become. They come with big cars and even offer to buy things for their bosses, literally saying, ‘we have made it, you are still on this your needle and thread job’.”
Aside Yahoo yahoo, what other reasons are responsible for apprentices quitting midway?
Aigbedion said: “When it comes to handiwork, it takes years; but this generation of youths don’t have that patience. They want to make it early and quickly. That’s the case with the one I spoke of earlier. The moment she felt she had acquired enough skills, her attitude changed and she started playing truancy, coming to work at her convenience. So I released her. I later found that even her mother was encouraging her, as most of her friends were giving her jobs, which she would first attend to before coming to resume with me.”
Aigbedion has trained about 50 apprentices since she started out fulltime in 1994, and says she never burdens her apprentices with huge severance requirements.
While it may sound odd, the hard reality is that young Nigerians now prefer internet scamming and other vices, alongside unskilled jobs, to acquiring artisenal skills. Gboyega Alaka, who recently interacted with some master artisans, reports.
T’S a hot afternoon and this reporter and a friend had had to call on an auto-mechanic in the nearby Mechanic Village in Oke Afa area of Isolo, Lagos, to come fix the ball joint of the friend’s Mercedes Benz car, which had suddenly come off. While taking shelter in a nearby shed from the scorching sun, this reporter had casually asked the mechanic, a stout, muscular man, to please get his boy – that’s the local name for male apprentices – to get them bottles of soft drink to cool their thirst, while they waited.
To his surprise, the mechanic replied that he had none.
“What!” This reporter exclaimed, unbelievingly. How is that even possible in a country of so many youths and an alarming rate of school drop-outs and high unemployment? He wondered aloud.
“That is the truth o oga, that is our reality,” the master replied.
As if he’d been waiting for an opportunity to unburden, the mechanic proceeded: “Young people nowadays don’t have time to learn work anymore o. They would rather engage in internet scam popularly known as Yahoo-yahoo, or Yahoo plus or even Yahoo plus plus?’
“Which is ‘Yahoo plus and Yahoo Plus Plus,” this reporter asked. Of course, he knew Yahoo-yahoo, the local Nigerian name for internet scamming, where guys use all sorts of tricks to make unsuspecting white people send huge foreign currencies, which they in turn cash and disappear into thin air. But even though he had an idea, having heard of it before, he still prodded the mechanic, who by now had got up from under the car and was dusting his trousers in readiness to lecturing this bookish people of new trends.
“Oga, Yahoo plus and Yahoo Plus Plus is the new kind of scamming, where guys go fetish and carry out all sorts of fetish rituals and diabolical activities, just to get the white man to pay. Guys started doing this when it dawned on them that maga (‘foolish’ white men), had become smart and no longer falling for cheap lies and lines anymore. They go as far as using human parts and anything, even their mother. I’m sure you remember the pant stealing episode.”
Aside yahoo yahoo, the mechanic said a lot of them have also gone into collecting rates for transports unions popularly called Agbero in Yoruba speaking parts of Nigeria and any other things that could bring them quick money.
As he went on and on, literally pouring out what seemed like his pent-up frustration, it suddenly dawned on this reporter that a number of the vulcanisers/tyre technicians he had had to work with also rarely had any helping hands or apprentices; something that didn’t use to be so some years back. Is this really the new trend? If so, what future for artisenal vocations? Who does the jobs, going into the future? Why cry of unemployment when employable hands are running away from acquiring skills that’ll empower them?
Youths no longer want to stay the course for apprenticeship – Master artisans
In carrying out real time investigation on this trend, the first point of call for this reporter was a vulcaniser’s shop.
Ahmed Isiaka runs a Vulcaniser’s spot along the Ikotun-Egbe road, not too far from the globally renowned Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN).
He is a registered member of the Vulcanisers Association of Lagos State, Ikotun-Egbe Zone and has been operating as an independent tyre technician since 2007. That was after he used four years to understudy his master as an apprentice, starting from 1998.
At that time, Isiaka recalled that they were four apprentices learning the craft under their master.
“Then, the scenario was such that even the bosses didn’t have to do much work, as senior members who had already acquired full skills and awaiting their freedom, were the ones training the younger apprentices almost one hundred percent. This, of course, gave our oga the time to explore other business opportunities, yet we did not desert him or exhibit any arrogance or self importance. It was the norm and nobody thought of rocking the boat.”
Regrettably, the above situation has not been the case with Isiaka himself, as he told this reporter that he hasn’t had a single apprentice since 2018.
He used to have them initially, but according to him, “They normally drop off along the line. As I speak with you, only one has managed to officially graduate, having stayed the course of the agreed time. Most of the time, they just quit without as much as a word; and it is not as if they had acquired enough skills and were going to set up elsewhere. They simply just lack the patience to learn the job. At most, they spend six months, and then you don’t see them again.”
Asked what could be responsible for this trend, Isiaka said, “I think there problem is that they are in a hurry to make money, so they run off to take up security jobs and the likes – anything that would bring them salaries. Meanwhile, these salaries are meagre, compared to what they would make if they endure, stay the course of the training to set up on their own. A good number would go and engage in internet fraud popularly known as ‘yahoo, yahoo’; some go into Okada (commercial motorcycle) riding or Marwa (tricycle) riding, bus conductor; anything that would bring them immediate cash, rather than endure and acquire a skill. And this is not peculiar with me, as other members of our association have the same story to tell, with little variations.”
Does this not spell doom for the future of the vocation?
Isiaka was quick to answer in the affirmative.
“Of course it does, because our generation is getting old, and if this trend continues, the possibility of not having enough hands in the industry and a possible death of the profession is likely. Some people trained us, if we don’t have anyone to pass the knowledge to, it means an end to the profession.”
Could these young people be quitting because they see no prospect or road to prosperity in the vocation?
To this, Isiaka, who said he chose to learn the job because of his fascination with vehicles and tyres, smiled and said, “A tyre technician’s job is not a poor man’s job by any means and you can never go hungry. However bad things may get, you would make enough to feed yourself in a day, especially if you’re stationed in the township, where there are lots of vehicles. You can ask those who know. You own a car, you know how much you gauge, pump or repair your car tyres. When I was an apprentice, how much were we gauging, pumping or fixing tyres? Ten naira, five naira… Today, the story has changed. We now patch a tricycle tyre at N500 and pump it at N200; while for cars, it is N300 for pumping and N1000 for patching. This of course is largely because of the prices of materials we use and fuel.’
Asked if he had any regret choosing the vocation so far; he said, “None whatsoever. I know some may view it as a dirty job, but that’s because they are not discerning. Aside being fascinated to the job from childhood, it is lucrative enough. It is through it that I take care of my family – feeding, paying rent, sending my children to school. Vulcanisers’ children go though universities; we live in our own houses…; I even support my aged parents through this job. So what regret would I have?”
Young people now prefer quick money to learning a crafts – Auto mechanic
Emmanuel Okonije, an auto mechanics of almost 30 years’ standing, with specialty in Hyundai and Kia motors, has the same story to tell.
At the moment, he has no single apprentice; and this is in spite of his vast experience that has seen him work in well established service centers like the Hyundai Service Center in Orile, Lagos.
His story also has a peculiar slant, as his last apprentice, owing to an appetite for quick money, had vandalised a customer’s vehicle, by removing the calipers, which he promptly sold. He had gone to the workshop to carry out the evil deed on a Sunday, when nobody would be around. Of course he was spotted, hence when the theft was discovered; it was easy to zero down on him and promptly get him arrested.
“Even though the matter was eventually settled and he came back, it didn’t take long before he left and hasn’t come back. That’s over two years ago. Since then I haven’t had any other apprentice. Before him, another had left around the Covid-19 pandemic period. He also has not come back since then.”
So for about two years, Okonije has had to do all his work alone; a Herculean task, if you know how tasking a mechanic’s job can be.
His present situation is also unlike his days as an apprentice, when they numbered about twelve under his master.
What then would he ascribe this dearth of apprentices to?
“I can’t say specifically,” he responded, “but I think they are more after money now than learning any trade or craft. They can’t seem to put themselves through any stress of learning, but they want to spend money. They just want to make money and start enjoying and living the big life.”
Some have ascribed it to the allure of yahoo yahoo, this reporter prodded.
“Not just yahoo yahoo; even before the yahoo yahoo thing came up, young people’s appetite for learning work had begun to dwindle. Most of them believe in finishing school and getting a job. Most of the young people now focus on education without giving the option of learning work any consideration. As a result, a lot of them finish schooling and begin to roam about looking for white collar jobs or cheap money. And if you even invite them to come and assist you and learn in the process, the first thing they would ask you is, “How much would you be paying me?” Meanwhile, while we were learning, there wasn’t any such luxury.”
Could this sudden loss of interest be because they see a bleak future in the job?
“Not at all. It’s actually a job with a lot of prospect,” Okonije said.
“But it depends on how you handle your customers, what you people call customer relations. If you do a good job and treat your customers well, they stay with you, and you enjoy the job. And of course, the more customers you have, the more money you make. Don’t forget that your customers are also your adverts, who get you new customers by spreading the word about the quality of your work. And if it is the other way round, they spread the word as well.
“More recently though, the harsh economy has begun to take a toll on the job, as customers who are supposed to bring their vehicle for servicing every three months, now extend it to four, five months; sometimes six; and this affects our own income. But by and large, it’s a job with prospects.”
Okonije, who says he has no regrets settling for auto mechanic repair works, said he joined a mechanic workshop in Lagos in 1987 as an apprentice and graduated in 1991. Thereafter, he did four years as a journeyman with an established workshop to further sharpen his skills, gain more experience and earn some money to find his feet, before he finally started on his own in 1995.
Before then, he had completed his secondary education at Oza Community High School and attended Igara Technical School, where he studied Auto Engineering, both in Edo State; he thereafter relocated to Lagos to enrol for full practical training.
This profession will not go extinct – tailor
For elderly tailor, Abdul Lateef Adelani Alaba, the situation is one that calls for concern. Even with his over thirty years experience on the job, he cannot boast of a single apprentice. Not a single one since 2015, a whopping eight years.
He also blamed the persistent internet scamming vice for this terrible downturn, but insists that the profession will survive.
“Mark my words, most of them who have left this work to go into Yahoo yahoo and other unholy stuff will come back when the government really turns the heat on them. Yahoo yahoo is just euphemism; what they are doing is criminality and a time will come when they would have no choice but to retrace their steps to this job or whatever handwork they had learnt. This job and most of the artisenal vocations will not die – because there will always be need for them.
“As an apprentice back in Oyo State, we were about thirty-two at my master’s workshop. It was a massive double shop workshop, yet everybody stayed, acquired the skill and went on to set up. Now compare that with my situation. And this is not peculiar to me; I can tell you the story is the same with several other senior tailors.
“But it hasn’t always been like this. When I first set up, I had about seven apprentices, but as we speak, I do not have a single one. The last time I had any was in 2015.”
Yet he insists that the job remains lucrative – one of the reasons he chose it, as people will always wear clothes, however hard the economy bites.
“There is no way one would not have challenges from time to time, but overall, I have no regret that I learnt the job. By and large I have been able to live and survived on it. With it, I got married, gave birth to children and have since been taking care of them all and my other needs. Some of my children have even finished school and got married.
“The problem is that most young people of today just want quick daily money. They don’t have the time to learn work or endure any apprenticeship routine. And you know, living on the fast lane comes with its own danger,” Alaba concluded.
The President of Anchor International Outreach Ministry and Chairman Board of Trustees of Anchor Humanitarian Care & Social Medical Initiative, Dr. Bolarinwa Omotosho, has been named world citizen peace ambassador.
This was contained in a letter by the Coordinator of the World Citizen Peace Lisa Krupp.
The letter stated the recognition was based on his contribution to the promotion of five peace actions in diverse ways.
“We encourage you to reflect on the five Peace Actions and the many ways you can embrace these actions. Getting to know them well and sharing them, will lead you to your goal, seek peace within yourself and others reach out in service project the environment respect diversity be a responsible citizen of the world,” She added.
Reacting to the appointment, Omotosho said it was not a position to be filled or a chieftaincy title but a call to be more committed as a peace educator and humanitarian.
He added the appointment will enable him to create a more peaceful world through personal actions and projects.
‘’As a humanitarian and World Citizen Peace Ambassador, this is a platform for me to furtherance my community engagement projects without discrimination and with full attention to youths and women,’’ he stressed.
Omotosho, a humanitarian, veteran youth worker and Pastor, is a certified leadership coach. The peace educator is the author of over 30 resources and books on youth culture.
He is a member of the International Association of Study of Youth Ministry in Africa (South Africa) and a member of the Youth Work WA, Australia.
As President of Anchor International Youth and Teen Work Academy, Lagos, he has offered 100% tuition scholarship to over 470 students of the academy between 2021 and 2023 February.
He expressed gratitude to God and his team for the appointment, saying it would afford him the opportunity to impact peace-building process to participants at the Peace Building and Reconciliation Conference in September 2023.
The conference, he explained, is designed to create a base for hundreds of peace-building leaders in schools, communities and organisations in Lagos, Nigeria.
Prophet Godwin Ikuru, founder of Jehovah Eye Salvation Ministry and member presidential campaign council of Tinubu/Shettima for President and Vice President has called on Christian leaders in the country not to heat up the polity.
Ikuru, who spoke at a press parley said the christian leaders are fighting against the May 29 2023 inauguration day.
According to him, the leaders are speaking to incite violence against the swearing-in of the president elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
‘There are underground planned protest to disrupt the swearing-in. Recently a leaked voice note of one of the presidential candidates and a big voice in the Nigeria Christian community went viral,though it was later denied but you know the implications of that voice note’
He described those pushing agendas for an interim government in the country as enemies of democracy as he described the outcome of the 2023 general election the will of God.
Ikuru added that Tinubu’s victory had been shown to him for two years and it was expected that he would win the contest.
‘Asiwaju Tinubu is a project of God. The body of Christ fought against him because of the Muslim/Muslim ticket yet he won. We all knew the challenges he faced,yet he surmounted them.This is a man who understands,unity,love and power of grace.
There are no denominations in heaven, nothing like Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria,PFN in heaven,the so called Christian leaders should stop making mockery of the church. If God chooses a man, nobody can bring any limitation. He noted. The man of God disclosed that after May 29,he welcome Nigerians to a new hope and transformation.
The Senior Pastor of Word Alive Ministries, Ibadan Alex Adegboye has urged Nigerians to return to God and live in righteousness, to overcome many tribulations facing Nigerians.
Speaking in Ibadan, as the Ministry popularly known as ‘Stone Church’ prepares for its 30th Anniversary, Adegboye also said Nigeria is created by God for a purpose.
He charged Nigerians to carry out the will of God, assuring God’s kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy will come to the land soon.
Adegboye stressed that God will reign in Nigeria despite the challenges facing the nation.
The cleric, who expressed displeasure at the rate Nigerians break law with impunity, urged them to adhere to the stringent laws of the land for the country to be better.
He said: “Our nation is so programmed with unrighteousness, that it has become second nature for us. We break every law with impunity and that is why Nigeria is what it is today”.
Adegboye prayed that Nigeria, by the spirit of God will submit itself to the will of God.
Chairman, Convention Planning Committee, Dr. Sola Akande announced the 2023 edition of Dunamis with the theme:”Thy Kingdom Come”.
According to him, the programme will be hosting ministers and leaders from the United Kingdom and Nigeria from April 25-30 at the church headquarters, Ibadan.
