Of Political Participation and Adeboye’s Anger By Yinka Salaam

The immediate past General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Nigeria and oversees, Pastor Enoch Adeboye recently ordered Christians to join politics with a view to ensuring their wishes are frequently pushed through at the national level.

Pastor Adeboye

He said this at the Annual Ministers Conference on Saturday as he decried what was described as government’s meddlesomeness on church matters in the country.

Adeboye was apparently reacting to the Corporate Governance Code of the Financial Regulation Council which made him step down and appoint a new General Overseer for Nigeria which led to the invention of a new title of the General Overseer of RCCG Worldwide.

Pastor Enoch Adeboye joined the RCCG in 1973 and was appointed General Overseer of the church in at the age of 36 in 1981 after the demise of Ondo-born founder of the church, Reverend Josiah Akindayomi. As at the time, the church had 43 local branches and had just established the first overseas parish in Ghana.

It would be recalled that the Financial Regulation Council Act stipulates a maximum period of 20 years for the heads of registered non-governmental Organisations, including churches, mosques and civil society organisations.

With the development, the likes of Adeboye, Pastor Williams Kumuyi of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Ministries will have to go. The law is also applicable to Islamic organisations like: Nasrullahil Fatih NASFAT, The Muslim Congress, Ansarudeen, Jama’atu Taawun Muslimeen, Jama’atu Nasril Islam, the Ummah and any other religious organisations that engage in business activities or money making ventures.

Interest in church affairs

Speaking at the Redemption Camp along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun, Adeboye expressed worries over deliberate ‘anti-Christian laws’ being churned out by the Federal Government to interfere in church affairs.

He therefore challenged the ministers and members to go back home and get themselves involved in party politics by registering as card-carrying members of political parties of their choices.

“All of you should get back and encourage your members to join political parties of their choice, get membership cards and be very active at the ward levels. The government has been showing increasing interest in church affairs. Unfortunately, for us in RCCG, it might not be very helpful,”

The Pastor told the congregation that the only means to sustain the RCCG grip on government and prevent unfavourable laws and policies is to determine those who make laws and implement them.

“Some people believe that RCCG is becoming too influential and we’re going to be more influential. When you get home, tell members to join a political party. Join a party and become a card-carrying member of any party. Just join any party. We shall decide issues right from the ward level.

If you are not active at ward levels, you’ll do what they plan and say at the top. Enrol in any party of your choice and have a card. When holding meetings at ward level to choose delegates,be there”.

Adeboye particularly urged the Christian faithful to take advantage of their rising number in the society and beat their rivals to it.

“One Muslim in Ibadan said years ago that he didn’t know what’s wrong with Christians that we help them to occupy political positions and serve, refusing to capitalise on our population. That’s going to change from now,” he boasted.

The cleric who did not hide his anger to the developments alleged that other fresh laws had been enacted by the government to ruffle the feathers of church in the country, with a particular target on RCCG.

According to him, “Now there are fresh laws. We have a rough idea of what the law is about”.

Pastor Adeboye went further to accuse the government of not allowing the church to continue with its stipulated lifetime 100 per cent salaries to its pensioners.

“For example, when I decided on what will be the pension of our pastors, what I decided was not done anywhere in the world – that somebody will retire and continue to earn full salaries all his lifetime.

This, I started, but the government stepped in and made a law that we should be contributing to pension fund.

We have to obey and we started doing that. The results are that pastors don’t get as much as they were getting under our own previous arrangement. But what can we do? We have to obey the law,” he disclosed.

The RCCG exercise very strong holds in the Nigeria’s political and economic landscape. Through tactical, strategic and thorough planning, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, a Senior Pastor in the RCCG warmed his way into the heart of a foremost political gladiator in Nigeria, by which he became the Attorney General of the most influential state of Lagos before he eventually became the Vice President through a high-wired deft political maneuverings.

And with proper economic packaging and intricate networking, RCCG with its interests is today a force to reckon with in the Nigeria oil industry and economic sphere generally.

A Lagos-based politician, Adeola Adebanjo attested to the political consciousness and sophistication of the RCCG.

“RCCG members are conscious and sophisticated politically. They can always get what they want either at the CDA, political party or government level. They can also be decisive in getting what they want. For instance, a strong RCCG member, Pastor Olugbenga Oyebode is the leading aspirant for APC Chairmanship position in Itire-Ikate LCDA. He’s even being supported by a Muslim former Chairman!”.

Adebanjo explained that Oyebode’s rival, AbdulHakeem has what it takes to challenge the Pastor,’ since he’s a grassroot politician and very popular in his constituency, but he couldn’t secure enough support from the kingmakers and political god-fathers, because he could neither match the political sophistry nor the financial muscle of Pastor Oyebode and his group.

Commenting on the development, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who is also a member of the church, Ebun-olu Adegboruwa said though Pastor Adeboye and his followers were not happy with the development, the law meant well for the populace.

“The Codes of the Financial Reporting Council are not new. They were implemented seamlessly for Banks when their Directors who had been in office for ten years were asked to hand over. This has now been extended to non-profit organisations like churches and there is nothing strange about this.

“These codes were contested at the Federal High Court and the court decided against us. They are meant to achieve transparency in these organizations.

I therefore humbly appeal to Daddy GO to follow through his plan and avoid the temptations of the Gambia.”

And speaking on Adegboruwa’s submission, a columnist and social commentator, Warees Solanke wondered why those who were meant to be protected by the law seem not to appreciate the import of the Corporate Governance Code.

“Corporate governance is about public or stakeholders interest. Any responsible government must have systems and instruments, through policies, regulations and codes to protect the public interest. Government cannot wait until the time when public interest is jeopardized before it acts.

“At whose cost or expense are law enforcement agents invited to wade into leadership crisis in many organizations. People are just being sentimental about the code. I will advise anyone who wants to gain a broader and rational understanding of this issue to read the 2011 gazette of the financial reporting council of Nigeria as well as the 2014 separate codes of governance for public, private and not for profit organizations.

Frustrating government effort

“There are actually three codes, one for public organizations, another for private organizations and the third for NGOs and FBOs. From my understanding, these codes are meant to preserve the integrity of the organizations, their leadership and management, protect the interest of stakeholders, the public or the members and save the organizations from odium and crises associated with leadership succession, financial prudence, operational and administrative responsibilities.”

Solanke expressed surprise at the reactions of those who should know better.

“So, it is unfortunate that enlightened minds that are supposed to understand the import of corporate governance and the role of government in preserving public interest are the ones showing worst ignorance. Anybody that follows the shameful crisis within the Assembly of God Church or the Celestial Church of Christ over the years would easily see the appropriateness of the code”.

“The subject of corporate governance has always dominated public discourse. The absence of corporate governance has sounded the death knell, mismanagement and power tussle in many organizations, even leading to infighting, fictionalization, splinter groups, bloodshed and in worst cases of assassination,”he said.

The immediate past Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Regulation Council, Jim Obazee indicted the Pentecostal churches for frustrating government effort to sanitise the system.

“In keeping other peoples’ money, you have to prepare account. That is why churches fought me so badly, took me to court as a person and then my office too. Mosques and orthodox churches freely complied, but those Pentecostal churches called me to ask questions. They said: ‘This church is church of God and we are accountable to God.’ And I told them: ‘Very good, so you must take this church to heaven, you can’t operate it here’. When public funds are involved, government needs to ensure proper accountability.”

He explained that Religious organisations are set up as ‘not-for-profit’ and they should remain institutions of public character.

“If you want to set up a school, then it should be free for all your members’ children. If you charge any money, then you are in the same league with other schools outside that are paying taxes to the government. If you set up schools, hospitals and the likes under a church, there is a high likelihood that you will be engaging in non-charitable activities within charity. If you are doing that, then what stops Dangote from setting up a mosque and having all his cements, rice and sugar under it? That is actually what some churches and mosques are doing”.

Responding to this scenario, the immediate past Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, said that NSCIA was indifferent to the Financial Regulation Council Act which stipulates a maximum period of 20 years for the heads of registered churches, mosques and civil society organisations.

Oloyede was of the opinion that the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God worldwide, Pastor Enoch Adeboye in his notification of his withdrawal as the GO of RCCG, Nigeria; should have explained that the FRC regulations was not a new act.

Avoid extortion of the public

“I was a bit disturbed because rather than facing issues, we always divert attention. When people talk about this law, was it made by Buhari? The answer is No! It is not a new law, it has been there. When this law was made, our Christian counterparts approached Islamic group to ask for our reaction and our reaction was indifference”.

Oloyede said the law was not meant strictly for religious organisation but was meant for NGO to avoid extortion of the public.

“Was the law made for religious groups? No! It is made for NGOs. You know that NGO has become non-governmental individuals, they are using NGOs in a private and personal manner, extorting the public and if in the wisdom of the government you are either NGO, or not?

In a surprise twist, the Federal Government on Monday, along with other four agencies, suspended the Corporate Governance Code which was issued on October 17 by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria.

While many attributed this to the stepping aside of Pastor Adeboye and his overbearing influence on the government, a statement by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah, who is also a Redeemer, said the code was only suspended in order to carry out a detailed review of its application

He said the review would involve extensive consultations with stakeholders upon the reconstitution of the board of the FRC.

The statement stressed government’s commitment to ‘restoring and enhancing market confidence and improving the ease of doing business in the country’.

Nigerians are hoping that the good initiative and well intended move of the government would not be thwarted by the usual primordial sentiments and the typical Nigerian factors.

Adeyinka T Salaam