TUNDE BAKARE: I’m not religious
Tunde Bakare, the pastor of Latter Rain Assembly, doesn’t need much introduction. In 2010, when the country was at the edge of the precipice following the absence from office of late President Umaru Yar’Adua, who was in a Saudi hospital over terminal ailment, Pastor Bakare, through the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) played a great fillip to doused the heat that was over overstretching the polity to a breaking point.
In 2011, he was the running mate to the presidential candidate of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd)
In an interview with VINCENT KALU and LAWRENCE ENYOGHASU, the fiery pastor talked about his life; how he would have ended up as a carpenter and why he is not religious.
Excerpts
You are obviously a very busy person, so how much time do you have to show your family that they have a father, if you know what I mean?
I only come to church once a week, that is, on Sunday and in the course of the week; I stay at home with my family and also look after my business. Those who have been trained to run the church are here. The church is working round the clock; it is not being built around an individual.
I relax by reading, swimming and hosting people in my home. Ordinarily, you won’t see me here in the church except on Sunday. Six days you shall work, seventh day is your day of rest; I apply the same thing. The best place to catch me is at my house, if you don’t get me here (the church) on Sunday you can’t see me here from Monday to Saturday, except there is a wedding.
As a young man, you have had a mentor, who was he?
Before I got born again, which was the first 19 years of my life, there was only one person that challenged me, and it was late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. At a tender age, he challenged me with what he did for humanity, especially in Western Region. But, when I got born again and began to dig into the word of God in1974, certain things began to change about my understanding and perspective. Awolowo still remains one of those people who contributed their quota, and whose mark and contributions cannot be erased. But if you ask me who is the role model I have today, there is only one. It is Jesus. The more I discover him in the word of God, the more revolutionary I see in Him to leave this word better than I met it.
Is it to replicate Awo’s contributions that took you to politics?
My journey into politics started a long time ago. In 1978, I was the presidential candidate at the union level at University of Lagos. I was called, ‘the politician from the pulpit,’ because I was born again and was preaching from the pulpit in the campus and then contested an election. In the same year, Gbenga Daniel and I as well as a few others, started what was called, the Dyna Claw, which was the youth wing of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN). The day the party was launched, at Yaba, I was on the platform with Chief Awo, Mama H.I.D Awolowo, Babatope, Ajuluchukwu and few others.
So, the journey is not an overnight jump from one place to another. It has a trail. There was only one person among others, who knew about all this ever before it happened; it was Pastor Enoch O. Adeboye, who I told when I became a member of his church that my future career is in politics.
Some say politics and religion should not have a meeting point?
People who believe so are right. Politics and religion are like oil and water. I hate religion with a passion. I am not a religious man. Religion means return to bondage. Christianity is different because it made us kings and priests. Don’t confuse Melchizedek priesthood with a running priesthood. A running priesthood is a priest that wears all kinds of bishopric garments. That was separated from a kingly role. Melchizedek was a king and a priest when he met Abram. Jesus Christ priesthood is out of Melchizedek. If you read Revelation Chapter One, it says ‘He has made us kings and priest to our God and He shall reign forever, we shall reign on the earth.’ One of the gifts of the spirit is leadership, ‘He will lead with diligence’, the Bible said so. The word ‘government’ is not a strange word in the Bible, “ Unto us a child is born and to us a Son is given, the government shall be on his shoulder, if Jesus is the head of the church, He is not the shoulder.
The shoulder is part of the body and all the attributes of government given in Isaiah … are what we call today, the judiciary, executive and legislature, the three arms of government, which are rooted in the Bible. Isaiah 33 beginning from verse 20, says, ‘the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, He is our king, and He will save us…’ Those are the attributes of what you call the three arms of government. And this government is in you and in me and it manhead of the church, He is not the shoulder. ifests also. In Romans 13, the Bible says even tax collectors are ministers of God, ministering for Him in matters pertaining to revenue, collection and administration. Those who are confused are just confusing themselves. If we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, then God expects us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world and if the word of God says corruption will not stop until you find the manifestation of the sons of God, then you need more sons to come into manifestation, like Daniel Shedrach, Meshach and Abednego, Esther, Nehemiah and also Joseph who not only fed Egypt but the world during famine, etc. We need such people to come to power. Why? When the wicked are in authority, men groan, but when the righteous are in authority, people rejoice.
You were practising law, why did you dump it for the pulpit?
I started with Gani Fawehinmi, I left for Rotimi Williams, and God has ordered my steps. Whether in law or in ministry, I had the opportunity of being tutored by the generals. Gani and Rotimi in law, Bro W. F. Kumuyi and Pastor Adeboye in the ministry. I didn’t jump into ministry overnight. In 1988, I pioneered the Model Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God. I was in Foursquare from 1978 to 1983, then in Redeemed between 1984 and 1989, before God led me here.
I never thought I would be a preacher in my life or pastor. I had only three clear goals. One, to get to the zenith of my career as a lawyer, secondly, to venture into business so that I will make lot of money because Chief Awolowo taught us that it is good to have your personal money before you venture into politics, so that you don’t dip your hand into public funds, that you should have your own profession and an exit strategy to fall back on and the third, is politics. So, I drew a triangle, on the first angle is law, the other is business and at the apex is politics. That was the way I wanted to run my life until God arrested me and brought me into ministry. I found out that David who later became king of Israel was a shepherded boy, and he shepherded Israel with the skill of a shepherded. What is lacking in government today is the skill to lead accurately. There are two sides of the same coin. Jesus is a king, a priest and he is making intercession for us. So was David, a prophet, a king and a priest.
Probably you would have been a SAN by now?
I do not miss it. Thank God there was water inside coconut before rain fell.
What has been your greatest moment?
There are much of such moments, but this might shock you. One of such greatest moments of my life was the day I finally stepped into secondary school. By the time, I was two years going to three, my father died, and I was single handedly raised by my mother. When I left primary school in 1966, there was no money to continue, so they took me to a carpenter shed at 20, Jebba Street, Ebutemeta, to learn furniture and I escaped from there to go back to Abeokuta, because I wanted to go to school. I had to do all kinds of jobs, fetching water and firewood for people. But by the time I got to secondary school in 1969, my classmates in primary school were already in form three and four. When, eventually I stepped into school, it was one of the greatest days of my life, because I was hungry for education
Another was the day I graduated from the University of Lagos and subsequently called to the Bar. It was such a fulfilling moment in my life because the dream I had since 1963 has eventually come to pass. And then when my first child was born, I can’t even quantify the joy of that day.
Wouldn’t you have been a huge success as a carpenter?
I would not have made a success of it because the whole environment irritated me. I still like a bit of construction because that is the business I do. But the terror that I saw inside the carpenter’s shed was too scary for me. One day, one of the apprentices of our boss offended him and he just took a saw and asked him to pull off his clothes and he started beating him with the saw. Overnight, because of the incident, I looked for money and returned home.
What has been your lowest moment?
It was a day I lost my siblings, a set of twins my mother had after me. One died in the morning and another died in the evening. When I asked after them, they told me that they had all gone to London, I requested to join them, but my mother said I would never go there. Later, I found out that they were dead. I miss them but God has compensated me with more children. That was one of the saddest days.
However, I am actually a joyful person, so things don’t bore or break me down easily. Among one such lowest days, was the day General Muhammad Buhari cried for Nigeria in the wake 2011 election. Many people don’t know him for who he is. I just finished a video entitled, “The Buhari I Know”. When he wept in that room, my heart was cut. Another was the day Nasiru El Rufai lost a son and a daughter; it was a moment of great pain for me. Naturally, when my house got burnt on Good Friday 2011, he was the only person I know on planet earth who came with a bag full of fabrics, because he thought that my clothes could have been burnt.
You were born into a Muslim family later you changed to Christian faith, what happened?
I was first born a child; nobody was born with religion. I was born into a family of practising Muslims, but when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb to reveal Himself in me on September 24, 1974, I became a Christian and since then I never looked back.
How did your family react?
Of course, they opposed it. My eldest brother I was living with at that time gave me 10 minutes to pack out of his house. I packed and went to live in petrol station, Alogomeji. It was the only place I could stay because it was raining. The next day, I went to church, and then hang out with some friends. From there life continued.
What have you done or didn’t do that you would do otherwise, if given a second chance?
I don’t live in the valley of regrets. I don’t think there is a thing that I think I should have done otherwise. The only thing I could think was my investment with a friend. We decided to bring Skoda Motors into Nigeria and he decided to cheat, so I left everything for him. From that incidence I learnt how not to take people on face value. If I make a mistake I would want to learn from it and move on and not sit in the valley of despondency and be crying. When I set goals, I achieve them. I do my best in every situation and leave the rest to God. My philosophy of life is maximizing in continuity.
How did you and your wife meet?
I was in the office, El Shaddai Chambers, my last office after I left Rotimi Williams, when one of my friends, late Segun Onabule, came in, bringing the news that his wife just had a baby and there was a party for it. A bank was at the lower floor of my office. He said a lady who worked at that bank, was invited by one of his friends to the party. So, he wanted to stop to say, “hello.” He saw me in the chambers, and I was seeing him off when I saw this lady, (who later became my wife), whom he said attended the party.
Another day was when my friend Jide came to my office. His father had died and he wanted to change his old notes into new notes before the funeral. He asked me to be of assistance since I worked close to a bank. I took the money and I gave it to this lady to help me get new notes. It was on Thursday. I got back to the chambers and my boss told me that I would be handling a case in Port Harcourt, I ran to the airport, flew to Port Harcourt, handled the matter. On Friday, I returned to Lagos and I went straight to the bank, but the lady had closed for the day. Luckily, she left a note. I took the note and went with my friend and located the house address in Ikoyi. When we knocked, a six-footer man answered with a husky voice. I humbly answered and stated my mission; I later found out that he was her father. I collected the money and left. I learnt that he called his daughter and asked; ‘who is this man?’ she answered him that there were two, one tall and the other short. Jide is taller than I. He asked her, the short one. She told him that, he just met and asked her to change old notes to new ones, that is all, there was nothing between us. He told her that as soon as he came in, ‘I saw an illumination around him and the spirit of the Lord told me that he would be your husband.’ It was later she told me that I was the first man her father would allow to come inside the house. So, my father in-law knew first before anybody.
After that, we didn’t talk again. One day she walked in to the chambers to do notary public thing. Then I was distributing some telephone tracks. I gave her one and she asked if I was a Christian, I told her that I was born again. From there I spoke to her to dedicate her life to Christ. And one day it was revealed to me that she would be my wife and when I spoke to her, she said, ‘What, my father said so the day I came to their house ’. That is the story.
How long has the marriage been?
Still short, it was 30 years on November 24, 2014. By the grace of God we are blessed with five wonderful children. We thank God for all that we have been through and all that we are enjoying in the marriage.
You associated with many people from different backgrounds and you have seen and done a lot. In all of that, what has life taught you?
First, don’t put your trust in the hands of flesh; it will fail you. Another is, don’t sow bad crops or bad seeds; what you sow is what you get. Keep on doing what is right, and who and what is wrong will leave you alone.
Nigeria’s political atmosphere is charged, do you entertain fears over next month’s general elections?
I have faith for a turnaround in my nation. Elections have never bailed us out since 1999. Would there be a difference this time let’s wait and see, and it depends on who wins the election.
Why are you not running for any post this time around; are you done with partisan politics?
Politics is the act of negotiation. Either you are negotiating for power or negotiating for what will affect the generality of the people. May be, I have not left politics nor has it left me. When I was invited by General Buhari (rtd) to run along with him, I did not lobby for it. And when I came in, I gave in my best. But, right now, I am praying for a very peaceful election, because as you said the polity is overheated but, we trust God to see us through. nor has it left me. When I was invited by General Buhari (rtd) to run along with him, I did not lobby for it. And when I came in, I gave in my best. But, right now, I am praying for a very peaceful election, because as you said the polity is overheated but, we trust God to see us through.
Between Jonathan and Buhari, who do you think will take Nigeria out of the woods?
That is a very difficult question. There is no direct answer to such because only God knows tomorrow. But, doesn’t simple logic suggest that if someone has been in power, and people are clamouring for change, you allow the second person to come in? There were people in power before Jonathan; there was someone he ran with who died in office before he could assume power. If they didn’t go, he couldn’t be there. I will be very specific in answering your question. I pray God Almighty will help Nigerians to make a decision through the polls that will favour majority of the people in this country. It is either we are voting for change to go forward, bad to good or we are jumping from frying pan to fire. In Isaiah, the Bible says, if you ere in vision you will stumble in judgement. The moment there is error in your vision, your day-to-day decision making process will be porous. I don’t want to make such statements that are just hanging. If you ask me where my loyalty lies, I ran with Buhari, and I think, surrounded with competent men he can deliver; he can take the country out of the woods. The Nigerian elections are neither free nor fair nor credible, but they are just manageable. We have free voting but not free elections.
What puts you off?
Double standard, hypocrisy, and lies. I can’t stand them. I can’t stand you saying we are going here and in the middle of the game you change the goal post and I know you are lying. A hypocrite is a man who murdered his own parents and pleads with the judge to have mercy on him because he is an orphan. I can’t stand hypocrisy. I have seen it in the church. I like my word to be my bond.
You can’t separate these attributes from the average Nigerian politician. Do you think you would have made a good politician?
May be that is why I am not associating. In politics, sometimes you have to bend over backwards for the greater good.
Why is it that your church does not have branches?
If you follow the history of The Latter Rain Church, there was a time we had more than one, there was Ikoyi Solution Parish, we had in Jos, Ogba area, and another one in Abeokuta, but when God spoke to me, he said that was not what He asked me to do. But now we have a network of churches. What I do now is that I train men; I strengthen them, and then release them. Now each church can be self-supporting, propagating and self-governing. I don’t want to be a general overseer that will begin to post people here and there, it will be too much pressure.
In 2011, he was the running mate to the presidential candidate of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd)
In an interview with VINCENT KALU and LAWRENCE ENYOGHASU, the fiery pastor talked about his life; how he would have ended up as a carpenter and why he is not religious.
Excerpts
You are obviously a very busy person, so how much time do you have to show your family that they have a father, if you know what I mean?
I only come to church once a week, that is, on Sunday and in the course of the week; I stay at home with my family and also look after my business. Those who have been trained to run the church are here. The church is working round the clock; it is not being built around an individual.
I relax by reading, swimming and hosting people in my home. Ordinarily, you won’t see me here in the church except on Sunday. Six days you shall work, seventh day is your day of rest; I apply the same thing. The best place to catch me is at my house, if you don’t get me here (the church) on Sunday you can’t see me here from Monday to Saturday, except there is a wedding.
As a young man, you have had a mentor, who was he?
Before I got born again, which was the first 19 years of my life, there was only one person that challenged me, and it was late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. At a tender age, he challenged me with what he did for humanity, especially in Western Region. But, when I got born again and began to dig into the word of God in1974, certain things began to change about my understanding and perspective. Awolowo still remains one of those people who contributed their quota, and whose mark and contributions cannot be erased. But if you ask me who is the role model I have today, there is only one. It is Jesus. The more I discover him in the word of God, the more revolutionary I see in Him to leave this word better than I met it.
Is it to replicate Awo’s contributions that took you to politics?
My journey into politics started a long time ago. In 1978, I was the presidential candidate at the union level at University of Lagos. I was called, ‘the politician from the pulpit,’ because I was born again and was preaching from the pulpit in the campus and then contested an election. In the same year, Gbenga Daniel and I as well as a few others, started what was called, the Dyna Claw, which was the youth wing of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN). The day the party was launched, at Yaba, I was on the platform with Chief Awo, Mama H.I.D Awolowo, Babatope, Ajuluchukwu and few others.
So, the journey is not an overnight jump from one place to another. It has a trail. There was only one person among others, who knew about all this ever before it happened; it was Pastor Enoch O. Adeboye, who I told when I became a member of his church that my future career is in politics.
Some say politics and religion should not have a meeting point?
People who believe so are right. Politics and religion are like oil and water. I hate religion with a passion. I am not a religious man. Religion means return to bondage. Christianity is different because it made us kings and priests. Don’t confuse Melchizedek priesthood with a running priesthood. A running priesthood is a priest that wears all kinds of bishopric garments. That was separated from a kingly role. Melchizedek was a king and a priest when he met Abram. Jesus Christ priesthood is out of Melchizedek. If you read Revelation Chapter One, it says ‘He has made us kings and priest to our God and He shall reign forever, we shall reign on the earth.’ One of the gifts of the spirit is leadership, ‘He will lead with diligence’, the Bible said so. The word ‘government’ is not a strange word in the Bible, “ Unto us a child is born and to us a Son is given, the government shall be on his shoulder, if Jesus is the head of the church, He is not the shoulder.
The shoulder is part of the body and all the attributes of government given in Isaiah … are what we call today, the judiciary, executive and legislature, the three arms of government, which are rooted in the Bible. Isaiah 33 beginning from verse 20, says, ‘the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, He is our king, and He will save us…’ Those are the attributes of what you call the three arms of government. And this government is in you and in me and it manhead of the church, He is not the shoulder. ifests also. In Romans 13, the Bible says even tax collectors are ministers of God, ministering for Him in matters pertaining to revenue, collection and administration. Those who are confused are just confusing themselves. If we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, then God expects us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world and if the word of God says corruption will not stop until you find the manifestation of the sons of God, then you need more sons to come into manifestation, like Daniel Shedrach, Meshach and Abednego, Esther, Nehemiah and also Joseph who not only fed Egypt but the world during famine, etc. We need such people to come to power. Why? When the wicked are in authority, men groan, but when the righteous are in authority, people rejoice.
You were practising law, why did you dump it for the pulpit?
I started with Gani Fawehinmi, I left for Rotimi Williams, and God has ordered my steps. Whether in law or in ministry, I had the opportunity of being tutored by the generals. Gani and Rotimi in law, Bro W. F. Kumuyi and Pastor Adeboye in the ministry. I didn’t jump into ministry overnight. In 1988, I pioneered the Model Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God. I was in Foursquare from 1978 to 1983, then in Redeemed between 1984 and 1989, before God led me here.
I never thought I would be a preacher in my life or pastor. I had only three clear goals. One, to get to the zenith of my career as a lawyer, secondly, to venture into business so that I will make lot of money because Chief Awolowo taught us that it is good to have your personal money before you venture into politics, so that you don’t dip your hand into public funds, that you should have your own profession and an exit strategy to fall back on and the third, is politics. So, I drew a triangle, on the first angle is law, the other is business and at the apex is politics. That was the way I wanted to run my life until God arrested me and brought me into ministry. I found out that David who later became king of Israel was a shepherded boy, and he shepherded Israel with the skill of a shepherded. What is lacking in government today is the skill to lead accurately. There are two sides of the same coin. Jesus is a king, a priest and he is making intercession for us. So was David, a prophet, a king and a priest.
Probably you would have been a SAN by now?
I do not miss it. Thank God there was water inside coconut before rain fell.
What has been your greatest moment?
There are much of such moments, but this might shock you. One of such greatest moments of my life was the day I finally stepped into secondary school. By the time, I was two years going to three, my father died, and I was single handedly raised by my mother. When I left primary school in 1966, there was no money to continue, so they took me to a carpenter shed at 20, Jebba Street, Ebutemeta, to learn furniture and I escaped from there to go back to Abeokuta, because I wanted to go to school. I had to do all kinds of jobs, fetching water and firewood for people. But by the time I got to secondary school in 1969, my classmates in primary school were already in form three and four. When, eventually I stepped into school, it was one of the greatest days of my life, because I was hungry for education
Another was the day I graduated from the University of Lagos and subsequently called to the Bar. It was such a fulfilling moment in my life because the dream I had since 1963 has eventually come to pass. And then when my first child was born, I can’t even quantify the joy of that day.
Wouldn’t you have been a huge success as a carpenter?
I would not have made a success of it because the whole environment irritated me. I still like a bit of construction because that is the business I do. But the terror that I saw inside the carpenter’s shed was too scary for me. One day, one of the apprentices of our boss offended him and he just took a saw and asked him to pull off his clothes and he started beating him with the saw. Overnight, because of the incident, I looked for money and returned home.
What has been your lowest moment?
It was a day I lost my siblings, a set of twins my mother had after me. One died in the morning and another died in the evening. When I asked after them, they told me that they had all gone to London, I requested to join them, but my mother said I would never go there. Later, I found out that they were dead. I miss them but God has compensated me with more children. That was one of the saddest days.
However, I am actually a joyful person, so things don’t bore or break me down easily. Among one such lowest days, was the day General Muhammad Buhari cried for Nigeria in the wake 2011 election. Many people don’t know him for who he is. I just finished a video entitled, “The Buhari I Know”. When he wept in that room, my heart was cut. Another was the day Nasiru El Rufai lost a son and a daughter; it was a moment of great pain for me. Naturally, when my house got burnt on Good Friday 2011, he was the only person I know on planet earth who came with a bag full of fabrics, because he thought that my clothes could have been burnt.
You were born into a Muslim family later you changed to Christian faith, what happened?
I was first born a child; nobody was born with religion. I was born into a family of practising Muslims, but when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb to reveal Himself in me on September 24, 1974, I became a Christian and since then I never looked back.
How did your family react?
Of course, they opposed it. My eldest brother I was living with at that time gave me 10 minutes to pack out of his house. I packed and went to live in petrol station, Alogomeji. It was the only place I could stay because it was raining. The next day, I went to church, and then hang out with some friends. From there life continued.
What have you done or didn’t do that you would do otherwise, if given a second chance?
I don’t live in the valley of regrets. I don’t think there is a thing that I think I should have done otherwise. The only thing I could think was my investment with a friend. We decided to bring Skoda Motors into Nigeria and he decided to cheat, so I left everything for him. From that incidence I learnt how not to take people on face value. If I make a mistake I would want to learn from it and move on and not sit in the valley of despondency and be crying. When I set goals, I achieve them. I do my best in every situation and leave the rest to God. My philosophy of life is maximizing in continuity.
How did you and your wife meet?
I was in the office, El Shaddai Chambers, my last office after I left Rotimi Williams, when one of my friends, late Segun Onabule, came in, bringing the news that his wife just had a baby and there was a party for it. A bank was at the lower floor of my office. He said a lady who worked at that bank, was invited by one of his friends to the party. So, he wanted to stop to say, “hello.” He saw me in the chambers, and I was seeing him off when I saw this lady, (who later became my wife), whom he said attended the party.
Another day was when my friend Jide came to my office. His father had died and he wanted to change his old notes into new notes before the funeral. He asked me to be of assistance since I worked close to a bank. I took the money and I gave it to this lady to help me get new notes. It was on Thursday. I got back to the chambers and my boss told me that I would be handling a case in Port Harcourt, I ran to the airport, flew to Port Harcourt, handled the matter. On Friday, I returned to Lagos and I went straight to the bank, but the lady had closed for the day. Luckily, she left a note. I took the note and went with my friend and located the house address in Ikoyi. When we knocked, a six-footer man answered with a husky voice. I humbly answered and stated my mission; I later found out that he was her father. I collected the money and left. I learnt that he called his daughter and asked; ‘who is this man?’ she answered him that there were two, one tall and the other short. Jide is taller than I. He asked her, the short one. She told him that, he just met and asked her to change old notes to new ones, that is all, there was nothing between us. He told her that as soon as he came in, ‘I saw an illumination around him and the spirit of the Lord told me that he would be your husband.’ It was later she told me that I was the first man her father would allow to come inside the house. So, my father in-law knew first before anybody.
After that, we didn’t talk again. One day she walked in to the chambers to do notary public thing. Then I was distributing some telephone tracks. I gave her one and she asked if I was a Christian, I told her that I was born again. From there I spoke to her to dedicate her life to Christ. And one day it was revealed to me that she would be my wife and when I spoke to her, she said, ‘What, my father said so the day I came to their house ’. That is the story.
How long has the marriage been?
Still short, it was 30 years on November 24, 2014. By the grace of God we are blessed with five wonderful children. We thank God for all that we have been through and all that we are enjoying in the marriage.
You associated with many people from different backgrounds and you have seen and done a lot. In all of that, what has life taught you?
First, don’t put your trust in the hands of flesh; it will fail you. Another is, don’t sow bad crops or bad seeds; what you sow is what you get. Keep on doing what is right, and who and what is wrong will leave you alone.
Nigeria’s political atmosphere is charged, do you entertain fears over next month’s general elections?
I have faith for a turnaround in my nation. Elections have never bailed us out since 1999. Would there be a difference this time let’s wait and see, and it depends on who wins the election.
Why are you not running for any post this time around; are you done with partisan politics?
Politics is the act of negotiation. Either you are negotiating for power or negotiating for what will affect the generality of the people. May be, I have not left politics nor has it left me. When I was invited by General Buhari (rtd) to run along with him, I did not lobby for it. And when I came in, I gave in my best. But, right now, I am praying for a very peaceful election, because as you said the polity is overheated but, we trust God to see us through. nor has it left me. When I was invited by General Buhari (rtd) to run along with him, I did not lobby for it. And when I came in, I gave in my best. But, right now, I am praying for a very peaceful election, because as you said the polity is overheated but, we trust God to see us through.
Between Jonathan and Buhari, who do you think will take Nigeria out of the woods?
That is a very difficult question. There is no direct answer to such because only God knows tomorrow. But, doesn’t simple logic suggest that if someone has been in power, and people are clamouring for change, you allow the second person to come in? There were people in power before Jonathan; there was someone he ran with who died in office before he could assume power. If they didn’t go, he couldn’t be there. I will be very specific in answering your question. I pray God Almighty will help Nigerians to make a decision through the polls that will favour majority of the people in this country. It is either we are voting for change to go forward, bad to good or we are jumping from frying pan to fire. In Isaiah, the Bible says, if you ere in vision you will stumble in judgement. The moment there is error in your vision, your day-to-day decision making process will be porous. I don’t want to make such statements that are just hanging. If you ask me where my loyalty lies, I ran with Buhari, and I think, surrounded with competent men he can deliver; he can take the country out of the woods. The Nigerian elections are neither free nor fair nor credible, but they are just manageable. We have free voting but not free elections.
What puts you off?
Double standard, hypocrisy, and lies. I can’t stand them. I can’t stand you saying we are going here and in the middle of the game you change the goal post and I know you are lying. A hypocrite is a man who murdered his own parents and pleads with the judge to have mercy on him because he is an orphan. I can’t stand hypocrisy. I have seen it in the church. I like my word to be my bond.
You can’t separate these attributes from the average Nigerian politician. Do you think you would have made a good politician?
May be that is why I am not associating. In politics, sometimes you have to bend over backwards for the greater good.
Why is it that your church does not have branches?
If you follow the history of The Latter Rain Church, there was a time we had more than one, there was Ikoyi Solution Parish, we had in Jos, Ogba area, and another one in Abeokuta, but when God spoke to me, he said that was not what He asked me to do. But now we have a network of churches. What I do now is that I train men; I strengthen them, and then release them. Now each church can be self-supporting, propagating and self-governing. I don’t want to be a general overseer that will begin to post people here and there, it will be too much pressure.
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