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Tag: Ebuka Obi

  • Unravelling that zion testimony debacle – By Dan Aibangbe

    Unravelling that zion testimony debacle – By Dan Aibangbe

    By Dan Aibangbe

    It was just a few days ago that the news broke about a young Lady named Loveth Helen Alo , who shared her fairy tale testimony of her grass-to-grace leap and divine turnaround that landed her into becoming a proud owner of a mansion in a notable estate in faraway Enugu State.

    The testimony has a root in a prophecy given during the Open Heaven ministration of Evangelist Ebuka Obi, Spiritual Director of the Zion Prayer Movement Outreach in February 2024. The young lady later returned to share her testimony of success that appeared to align with the earlier prophecy, but sadly, her testimony was discovered to be untrue.

    To the unsuspecting public, so many questions beg for answer: is the testimony sponsored or voluntarily self-orchestrated? For those thinking that the ministry could be peddling false testimonies I ask, is it reasonable that they would spend one whole year orchestrating it, considering they air about twenty or more different testimonies in each of the three programmes the hold every week?

    What would the Church stand to benefit from such a scheme – attract more members, considering the membership is already overflowing? Is this an isolated case or are there many of such cases? To the best of my knowledge, this is an isolated case among the multiples of outstanding testimonies featured on the church’s platforms.

    The Zion Prayer Movement Outreach has become a great brand renowned nationwide and in the international community. The active members are in millions and branches in almost all * nations of the world. To my mind, such a ministry has grown beyond the need for orchestrated testimonies. The Law of large numbers alone ensures there are too many quality testimonies to feature, without the need for any shenanigans. The real challenge is screening out the best.

    Under the leadership of the highly anointed Evangelist Ebuka Obi, the Zion Ministry has zero-tolerance for immorality, unbridled quest for wealth , obscenity, fraud, idolatry , demonic consultations and all form of vices. Evangelist Ebuka’s crusade style of puritanism has earned him open confrontation with Native Doctors especially of eastern confraternities.

    Sadly, his puritanism has also earned him envy and hatred from the established fellow clerics of the Christian faith. Some have openly confronted him while others are still acting covertly. Attempts have been made on his life without success and it is not surprising this new tactic of Blackmail may be part of their arsenal.

    Evangelist Ebuka Obi’s uncompromising practice of preaching the raw gospel and abiding by the principles of Jesus Christ and the old prophets , coupled with the huge success of the ministry in just over a decade has made him and the ministry the subject of acrimonious envy. It is the destiny of success that it always attracts detractors.

    Attacks on successful people and movements is not a new phenomenon. In fact, as far back as the times of Christ on earth, His ministry was subject to so many attacks and the establishment sought to kill Him! The comfort comes from the realisation that when you are on God’s mission, nobody can terminate it until God Himself is done!

    In today’s Christianity, especially the Pentecostals and Charismatics, the working of miracles are very essential in planting and promoting new brands. But the solidification of brands rely more on structures, protocols and sound doctrine.

    This fact answers the question of whether the ’fake’ mansion testimony of Miss Loveth was orchestrated by the ministry or Evangelist Ebuka Obi. It would be shocking that an already well established brand with up to 10 million members worldwide would be desperate to that extent. This same Ministry handles testimonies in multiples every service day (Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays). What would be the need for faking testimonies when the Ministry already has more than enough to handle during the limited broadcast times?

    In fact, in most of the programmes, there are cases of intending testifiers getting angry that they were not allowed to give their own testimonies because of time constraints as Ebuka would rather allocate more time to praise and worship, teaching the world of God and deliverance sessions than to testimonies.

    Evangelist Ebuka Obi is a self-disciplined man who has openly challenged his colleagues to the test of chastity. He requests any one of them who can confirm to have never indulged in sexual sins to come out in the open! He has also been a scourge and thorn in the flesh of deceitful men of God* , *occultists, fraudsters, popular called yahoo-yahoo! Is that the kind of person who would now be orchestrating testimonies?

    To those who would question why the ministry did not carry out due diligence before accepting and sharing the Loveth story, the blunt answer is that they actually did enough by requesting for the evidence of her claim, which she presented in video format showing her inside the apartment. It was this video evidence that actually exposed her lies eventually.

    So, rather than condemn, we should praise the Ministry, more so as crime detection is not their core competence or responsibility! That is for the Police. Those who also question why an ‘all-seeing’ Prophet did not know a plot was being hatched against him should consider that it is the prerogative of God to reveal things to his Servants at His own time and for His own glory alone! Sometimes, God allows both the tares and the wheat together for the purpose of a good harvest.

    The questions to ask ourselves is how many of us can run a business with 10,000 customers without an issue? These Men of God we keep disparaging carelessly run congregations with countless members from all walks of life. We must appreciate their industry and efforts to keep our society sane and pious.

    As to the case of Loveth, we should be satisfied that the Police are already involved. They are the right authorities by Law to investigate all forms of crime. Conjectures, speculations, rumours and other negative emotions do not help but rather detract the course of genuine investigations. Let the general public allow the professionals do their job this time around.

    Dan Aibangbe is a Media and Public Relations Consultant

  • We didn’t ask her to come and testify – Pastor Ebuka Obi breaks silence on “fake testimony” saga

    We didn’t ask her to come and testify – Pastor Ebuka Obi breaks silence on “fake testimony” saga

    Evangelist Ebuka Obi, the founder of Zion Ministry, has distanced his ministry from  the ongoing controversy surrounding a false testimony delivered in his church by an Enugu-based woman who claimed to have acquired a ₦500 million mansion.

    TheNewsGuru reports that the controversy began when a video clip went viral, showing the woman testifying at Zion Ministry about miraculously acquiring a luxurious mansion worth ₦500 million.

    However,  inconsistencies in her testimony, led to investigations which showed that the woman’s testimony was staged.

    Reacting, Nigerians on social media, alleged that the church had arranged for the woman to give the false testimony to boost its credibility.

    Speaking out for the first time since the allegations surfaced, Evangelist Obi during Sunday service  denied any prior knowledge of the woman’s intention to testify.

    He emphasized that the church did not invite her to share the testimony, describing the incident as an orchestrated plot to tarnish his image and discredit his ministry. “We didn’t ask her to come and testify. She must reveal who her sponsors are,” he declared, urging the woman to publicly expose those who allegedly influenced her actions.

    He continued saying, “I said it last month that my name would be all over the media. I said the media would be shaking, making it look real, but it’s all fake.

    “I heard from clergymen in the East that bloggers were sponsored. Now, do I know her? Does any member know her? She came to testify, just like hundreds of others who come here daily.

    “If the house she claimed to own is fake, then it is her who lied before God and His altar — not the ministry.”

    The clergyman further called on the public to disregard what he described as a calculated smear campaign designed to bring Zion Ministry into disrepute

    He also assured that the church would cooperate fully with any investigation aimed at uncovering the truth behind the scandal.

  • Why I can’t have sex with any woman – Popular evangelist, Ebuka Obi opens up

    Why I can’t have sex with any woman – Popular evangelist, Ebuka Obi opens up

    The founder of the Zion Prayer Movement Outreach (ZPMO), Ebuka Obi has claimed that he has “never had sexual intercourse” with any woman despite being unmarried.

    The Igbo cleric made this known during a recent interview with the BBC Igbo, where he revealed that he vowed to God 12 years ago to remain celibate until marriage. 

    “I have never dated before. I have never had sexual intercourse with any woman. Any woman who says I’ve had sexual relations with her should speak up,” he said.

    Explaining why he is yet to settle down, the Imo State indigene said  “Qualities in a woman is not the reason I am not yet married. What is holding me back is that I want to hear the voice of God on it. He has never directed me about marriage. I prayed for 100 days last year to hear from God about it but there was no sign.”

    Obi revealed that he was eight years old when he started his spiritual practices and began to hear from the holy spirit

    He added that at age 12, he placed his hand on a church altar and made three promises. The first is that he will not have sex until he gets married. Also, he promised not to leave the Catholic Church.

    The spiritual director also defended his prophecies, saying the Holy Spirit inspires them, adding that he never attended theology school.

    Speaking on fake miracles allegations, the cleric said those claiming such are misguided.

    “It takes somebody who is fake to be able to identify what is fake. I don’t know what is called ‘arrangee miracle’. I have never experienced it before,” he said, admitting that some men of God perform fake miracles.

  • BREAKING: This case is beyond me – Magistrate says as court strikes out Ijele Speaks’ case

    BREAKING: This case is beyond me – Magistrate says as court strikes out Ijele Speaks’ case

    An Abuja Magistrate Court has struck out the case of criminal intimidation, threat to life, cyber stalking, and cyberbullying filed against social media influencer, Chizorom Harrison Ofoegbu, popularly known as Ijele Speaks.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Chief Magistrate Emmanuel Iyanna of the Magistrate Court sitting at Wuse Zone 6 struck out the case on Thursday while citing jurisdiction, stressing that the case is beyond the court to try.

    Iyanna struck out the case and ceded it to the federal high court for trial while ruling on the bail application filed by counsel to Ijele Speaks led by Mr Marvin Omorogbe.

    In his ruling, the Chief Magistrate also ceded the bail application of Ijele Speaks to the trial judge at the federal high court to determine.

    Before the ruling, police lawyer and prosecuting counsel, Mr Obiora Ejiofor had objected to the bail application, alleging that the defendant had been making disparaging comments while in custody.

    “I want to draw the attention of this honourable court to the fact that the defendant is making disparaging comments against the court.

    “I am surprised that the suspect in custody is having access to gadgets with which he is making posts to social media. He is doing this with the view to intimidate the court into granting his wishes,” Ejiofor told the court.

    However, counsel to the applicant denied the allegation, saying there is no way the defendant could be making posts to social media from custody.

    “The applicant has been in detention for almost a month. I stand to vehemently counter this claim made by my learned colleague. This is not a playground for sentiments. This is a law court.

    “The prosecuting counsel has not filed any affidavit and attached evidence for this claim. Therefore, the court should not take him seriously,” Omorogbe said.

    After listening to their arguments, the Chief Magistrate said: “This is a court of law and must be seen to do justice. I will never be intimidated”.

    Recall that the bail application of Ijele Speaks suffered a setback and was postponed last week due to Iyanna’s absence from court over issues related to ill health.

    The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) is prosecuting the social media influencer over alleged criminal intimidation, threat to life, cyberstalking and cyberbullying against the founder and spiritual director of Zion Prayer Movement, Evangelist Ebuka Obi.

    Ijele Speaks was invited by the police days after his allegations against Evangelist Obi.

    Drama as police move to rearrest Ijele Speaks

    Meanwhile, a mild drama played out at the Wuse Zone 6 Magistrate Court after the case against Ijele Speaks was struck out as the police made an attempt to rearrest the social media influencer.

    The police had hurriedly secured a new warrant of arrest from the court with which to whisk Ijele Speaks away from the Keffi Correctional Centre’s warders who brought him to court, with the aim to continue to hold the social media influencer in detention.

    However, speaking with journalists after the court ruled on the case, Omorogbe disclosed that there is no justification for the police to continue to remand Ijele.

    The defence counsel further disclosed that efforts were being made to secure the release of Ijele Speaks from the Keffi Correctional Centre, where he is being held in custody.

    He stressed that all the orders that were obtained in the case ceased to exist, following the ruling of the magistrate court.

    “The court adjourned to today for ruling on the bail. Ruling was delivered but the court felt the proper place to continue proceedings is at the federal high court.

    “So, rather, he struck out the matter and by striking out the matter, it means that all the orders that we obtained in this case cease to exist because as it is today, there is no case at the magistrate court.

    “The clear order of the court is that the remand proceedings is hereby struck out. So, we will be taking steps now to ensure that Ijele is released immediately and unconditionally.

    “And if there are other reasons why the prosecution needs to prosecute him, we will wait for them at the federal high court. But as it is today, there is no justification to continue to remand Ijele,” Omorogbe said.

  • Alleged threat to life: Bail application of Ijele Speaks suffers setback

    Alleged threat to life: Bail application of Ijele Speaks suffers setback

    The bail application of Mr. Chizorom Harrison Ofoegbu, popularly known as Ijele Speaks, suffered a setback on Friday, following the absence of Chief Magistrate Emmanuel Iyanna.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Ijele Speaks had been facing trial over alleged criminal intimidation, threat to life, cyberstalking and cyberbullying.

    Iyanna of the Abuja Chief Magistrate Court sitting at Wuse Zone 6, had adjourned the case till April 12 (today) when the court will rule on the bail application of Ijele Speaks.

    A court staff who walked into the courtroom today while lawyers had seated said the Magistrate was sick after Monday’s sitting and has been indisposed.

    “My Lord is not feeling fine. Yesterday I called him and from his voice, I observed he is not feeling well. I just made a call now, he told me that he is seriously down,” the court staff said.

    The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) is prosecuting Ijele Speaks over alleged criminal intimidation, threat to life, cyberstalking and cyberbullying against the founder and spiritual director of Zion Prayer Movement, Evangelist Ebuka Obi.

    Counsel to the social media content creator, Mr. Marvin Omorogbe, had prayed the court to set aside a remand order granted against Ijele Speaks and order his release from the Keffi Correctional Center or in the alternative, admit him to bail.

    According to the defence counsel, the Police suppressed facts that led the court to order the remand of the defendant.

    He maintained that the Police lied that they had filed a criminal charge against the Applicant before a Federal High Court in Abuja.

    According to him, “For the fact that the Police came to court to lie on oath is enough reason to set aside the remand order. They misled the court into granting the remand order against the Applicant.”

    Omorogbe argued that the 14 days period that was earlier granted for the Applicant to be remanded, had expired, insisting that there was no application for the renewal of the remand order.

    However, while opposing the bail application, police lawyer, Mr. Obiora Ejiofor, said there was no evidence placed before the court to warrant the exercise of its discretion in favour of the detainee.

    He informed the court that the Police has filed a 4-count criminal charge against the Applicant before the Federal High Court in Abuja since the Magistrate court was bereft of the requisite jurisdiction to handle the offences levelled against the Applicant.

    “We are waiting for a date by the Federal High Court to arraign the Applicant. The Police is a very responsible institution of government,” Ejiofor added.

    Responding on points of law, Omorogbe told the court that exhibits police attached to the counter affidavit filed to oppose the bail request were forged.

    “The purported wanted person notice was forged. That was why they made a photocopy of it to confuse the court. The court should not accord any value to the exhibits. The documents do not meet the minimum standard of the evidence Act,” he submitted.

    He equally argued that police did not exhibit any charge in all the processes it brought before the Magistrate court.

    The defence counsel contended that the remand order he said was illegally obtained by the police by gross suppression of facts, had since elapsed.

    He, therefore, prayed the court to release his client on bail.

    After he had listened to submissions by both sides, Chief Magistrate Iyanna adjourned the matter for ruling.

    Meanwhile, the court staff disclosed today that Chief Magistrate Iyanna instructed him to schedule the bail application hearing for April 18th, by which time the Magistrate is expected to be hale and hearty.

    Recall that Ijele Speaks, a social media content creator was arrested over an allegation that he threatened to kill the founder and spiritual director of Zion Prayer Movement.

    In a video he posted on his Facebook page, Ijele Speaks, allegedly threatened to kill the cleric and cut off his head.

    He allegedly equally threatened to kill any police officer that attempted to arrest him.

    In another post, Ijele Speaks also reportedly carried a placard on which he wrote, “Evangelist Ebuka Obi is a criminal and liar” and tagged all the miracles in Zion Prayer Movement as deceits, urging the police to arrest him for turning his religious institution into a business enterprise.

    The development led to the filing of a petition to the Inspection General of Police (IGP) on the threat to the life of Evangelist Ebuka Obi and cyber-bullying.

    Based on the petition, the Applicant was arrested and detained in Abuja by the police.

  • Video: Lady flirts with evangelist during deliverance session

    Video: Lady flirts with evangelist during deliverance session

    During a deliverance session, a lady has been captured in a video flirting with evangelist Ebuka Obi. According to the clergyman, he revealed that the lady was a senior in the marine and needed to be delivered.

    When the clergyman inquired if she wanted to beat him after he laid his hands on her, she answered no, noting that he was “fine”.

    See the video below:

     

     

  • See why Evang. Ebuka Obi says Zion ministry is prophecy with instant solutions [Watch]

    See why Evang. Ebuka Obi says Zion ministry is prophecy with instant solutions [Watch]

    The Zion Prayer Movement Outreach in Okota, Lagos on November 12, experienced huge testimonies during the Sunday service in the church.

    Founded by Evangelist Chukwuebuka Anozie Obi, the ministry has become synonymous with stories of mind-boggling miracles of healings and deliverances occurring either at Zion City there and those witnessed in different parts of the world.

    The testimonies come from people who say they were located during online prayers by Evangelist Ebuka or were healed after using Seraphic Water and Seraphic Oil blessed by the Spiritual Director of the ministry, Ebuka.

    The people who testified to their healing last Sunday included a woman who had breast cancer; a US-based kidney disease patient (Onyedikachi), and Beatrice Obiozor from the United Kingdom who had glaucoma for 40 years and was healed after surgery failed to rectify the problem. There was also the story of Pirekina Anyanwu of Isiala Mbano, Imo State, who flew in from Florida, US, to testify to how the Seraphic oil and water healed his spinal cord injury and saved him from a highly risky surgery recommended by doctors.

    Watch video: