Popular Nigerian pastor David Oyedepo has suggested that poor Christians cannot raise godly children.
Oyedepo, who leads the Living Faith Church worldwide (popularly known as Winners Chapel), said that is why he demands neck-breaking fees from parents whose children attend Covenant University – a private school the pastor said “I didn’t build with monies from church tithes and offerings”.
Covenant University is one of the most expensive private schools in Nigeria with students paying over N700,000 every session, state run NAN reports.
“The school fees has God’s approval and is in accordance with the quality of facilities provided by the university in meeting the educational needs of the nation,” the bishop is quoted to have said.
Oyedepo reportedly made the comments in a Saturday telecast in preparation for his church’s annual convention.
Reports quoted the pastor as saying the huge sums were needed to create an environment where godly children could be raised. A major problem with that notion, critics say, is that the children of the poor cannot grow into god-fearing adults.
But the bishop dismissed his critics as ignoramuses who risked incurring the wrath of God if they didn’t stop talking against his “anointed”.
He related the case of one “critic” who was punished with terrible mouth odour after repeated comments against Winners Chapel leadership. He only received pardon following his confession and “my intervention before he was restored to dignity”, the bishop said.
Unfazed, Oyedepo’s critics question why a “man of God” wouldn’t, in a receding economy, consider slashing fees his school charges. But the bishop insisted Christians who are “committed” will be spared from suffering as Nigeria’s economy continue to suffer. Such Christians, Oyedepo suggested, should have enough money to raise godly children.
Students familiar with the “godly atmosphere” at Covenant University say it’s no more than a “glorified secondary school” where Oyedepo acts like an overbearing demigod. The bishop was addressing students one day when a phone rang. He reportedly flared up and banned students from using mobile phones. On another occasion, the bishop reportedly expelled 200 students for failing to come listen to him preach.
Critics say only “an Oyedepo”, who according to a video you can watch below assaulted a teenage girl, can pull off “stuffs like these”.
They wonder why the pastor cannot use his reported wealth to lessen the load on Nigeria’s poor.
In 2011, Forbes rated Oyedepo Nigeria’s richest clergyman with an estimated net worth of $150 million. The bishop is reported to own at least four private jets he reportedly said “I use to monitor our churches all over the world.”
His private schools lead several other Nigerian church schools which were, from the word go, out of the poor’s reach. Many of these schools were built from monies contributed by rich and poor church members.
The money-craze negates the history of education in Nigeria which saw seemingly selfless foreign missionaries pour their hearts, souls, bodies and monies into giving Nigerian children free education.
Oyedepo stands in sharp contrast to another Nigerian pastor who insists church schools must be free. His name is Chibuzor Gift Chinyere. He leads Omega Power Ministries (OPM). OPM schools offer Nigerian kids free education and meals. OPM even reportedly paid for a huge billboard propagating the message “church schools must be free”.
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