14042019 - 144 Killed in nine days

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PAGE 22 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, APRIL 14, 2019 21 kidnappers went blind in Delta forest after abducting me —Bishop Okokporo By Emma Amaize, Regional Editor, South-South and Paul Olayemi Bishop (Dr) Godday Iboyi Okokporo, JP, is General Overseer, Promise Kingdom Ministry Inc. Worldwide, aka Overflow Chapel, with headquarters in Sapele, Delta State. Okokporo, who turns 43 today, is also the ‘Prophet of Okpe Kingdom’ and President- General of Okpe Christian Council. In the past two weeks, it has been merriment in Sapele as residents, whose lives he has touched, lined up series of events to celebrate him. He spoke to Sunday Vanguard in an interview last Monday. Excerpts: Winning souls God has really been using me to reach out to many lives; we have won many souls, populated the kingdom of heaven and depopulated the kingdom of hell because my primary assignment and mission is to win souls for the kingdom. This is what we have been doing for the past 18 years. My ministry is into taking care of widows and the less privileged. Over 100 persons are on our scholarship, we also have the prisons ministry and if you go to the Sapele Prisons, they will tell you of our impact. The Controller-General of Prisons even wrote me more than five times through the Deputy Controller -General of Sapele Prison appreciating me for reaching out to people in the prison. Every month, we give substantial part of our tithes to the prison to support them and, even during my last year’s birthday, we took a day off to go the prison. We also go to orphanages and lepers to render assistance and prepare them for the kingdom of God. I never wanted to be a pastor It was a difficult task. When I was small, people told me about a pastor who came from Guyana. My mother was in Accra, Ghana then, she was born there. At eight years old when she went for crusade, a man of God from Guyana walked towards my grandmother, the late Madam Agbeyo Idisi, and told her that ‘this little girl you are carrying will give birth to a child, number three among her children and he is going to be great and he will help humanity. ‘When this child is born, take care of him very well and he will try to run away from his calling, but God will handle him and he will come back to Him just as Jonah did in the scripture’. My mum left Ghana and, after many years, she got married to Mr Iboyi Okokporo. After giving birth to the first child, Vero, she is now married to Ezekiel Eyarefe. She gave birth to Keffe Iboyi, my immediate elder brother and then me. So my grandmother said the prophesied child had been born and took me away. People started asking why and she said a prophet gave prophesy to her about the child many years ago, but I went through a lot of challenges from the very first day my mother got pregnant to when she gave birth to me. On April 14, 1976, when l was born, people thought I would not survive. It took me five years and three weeks to walk. It was obvious the devil was playing pranks on me, which is why, if I see anybody in problem, I use my last resources to help him. My life is a living testimony from day one. My father died some years later and my mum, after doing her best, died too. My father was a priest of the Alleluia Church and I grew up there. Alleluia church was brought to Nigeria by Evangelist John from America on February 2, 1954 and the name was later changed to Full Gospel. My father renounced his faith because the church was not doing well, we also did. Many years later, another man of God rose to take over the ministry, Pastor Peter Efemini, now Reverend Peter Efemini, he is now under me. God used him to organize a crusade and, before that crusade, the late Evangelist Cousin Mosheshe and Mimiyerijesu came to the community and prophesied that God was going to use me. They said I was going to be a very great man of God. They prayed for me and left, but I was not convinced. My thought was that pastors do not do well. A day later, Jesus appeared to me and said “my son, I am the one that spoke through my prophet from Guyana that you are going to be a great prophet and I am going to use you though it is not your will, let my will prevail”. I woke up, it was a dream. I left the community and went to Port Harcourt to stay with a friend for about a month. I was there when the dream came again. God told me to go home or you will die. I refused. Then I was involved in an accident and I almost died. I worked in Nigeria Dredging and Marine. I was a former rubber merchant and also palm oil dealer. I also worked at Songhai Delta. God gave me money. At the age of 19, I already had over N4m in my bank account. So when the calling came, the little money I saved, about N15m million, I used it to buy land for the church. I ran into problems. My businesses then were not progressing. I will pray and pray and somebody will appear before me in my dream and say “you cannot run away from me, so come back to your Maker”. There are three types of pastors: Those God called and their arrival was announced by God, those who followed leaders because of their willingness to serve God and God used them, and those who just love the calling, the way pastors dress (these are the people causing confusion in the today because they do not have the spirit of God fully in them). This is why I could not join politics because God said if I play politics, they will paint me black. I asked God whether politicians are not righteous and •Rev Okokporo He said Christians, minor prophets can play politics but major prophets should not; even in the Bible they did not play politics. Then I came home and another crusade came and the Lord said “go to that crusade because I want to make another relationship with you”. I went to the crusade and I re-gave my life to God, so the pastor started taking care of me. From there, I became children’s teacher. Later, l joined the choir and from there l became youth leader, choir leader, assistant pastor doing before God called me again. The Lord said “I am going to use you to do great work and your ministry is going to be Promised Kingdom Ministry Incorporated Worldwide, aka Overflow Chapel”. I asked, “what is Overflow Chapel?” The Lord said Overflow Chapel is from John 23 verse 5, which says ‘I will prepare a table before you in the presence of your enemies, and your cup will overflow’ and He told me that anyone who believes in me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. He said the ministry was going to be overflow of healing, overflow of deliverance, overflow of everything and that is how the ministry started. How God finally got me So this great man of God, Rev Peter Efemini, who God finally used in converting me told me that God said h e should come a n d work under me, that once a man is under a king, no matter the bead the man is wearing, he is still under the king. He said I should not be afraid that I am carrying the crown, which was why he left Full Gospel where he trained me, nurtured me and brought me up to Promise Kingdom. Reverend Efemini is still working with me now. I re-ordained him. He is now a Bishop-elect and, as I am moving to Archbishop now, he will be the next Bishop. Our ministry officially started on September 26, 2002 and we used to go from village to village. People would say “come to the city” and I would say “no, if everybody goes to the city, who will preach to the people in the villages?” And when people saw the anointing, the healing of the blind, they said this is real. There were so many miracles then, so they started trying to take me out of the community. But the king said, “My son, if you leave now, you know we do not have any major prophet in Okpe Kingdom, please stay with us.” He had to use everything. I became the ‘Prophet of the kingdom’ and then the President- General of Okpe Christian Council. I am in charge of over 3,000 ministers in Sapele and Okpe. We have branches in the kingdom before we started taking the ministry out of Delta. We are now in Edo State and Abuja branch will open in May. Abduction We have been praying about the issue of Sapele and that is why in past years, we organized crusades, seminars, to educate our youths. Yes, there was a time in Sapele that you could not fgo around freely without running into kidnappers. It is true that l was abducted on November 30, 2015, at about 9.25 pm, because they discovered that God is using me to reduce crime in the society. Some evil people decided to kidnap me after they discovered that occultists and native doctors in Sapele were coming to give their lives to Christ. I have used my hands to burn 340 shrines, we broke some building used for idol worship, and they met and decided to stop my activities. They tried physical and spiritual things, no way, so they finally decided to kidnap me. When the kidnappers came, they told me that their mission was to kill me. One of them said l was a big man, “so let us take him away and demand a ransom of N100 million. They took me away to a forest. Six of them actually came to the house to abduct me but in the forest, I counted 21 of them. God showed that He is God. I prayed to Him that if it was Him, Jehovah, that called me, that all the kidnappers should go blind, while providing a way of escape for me. Even me that prayed the prayer was amazed. I was seeing them but they could no longer see me. They now started begging me to help them, saying, ‘Man of God, we know you are a powerful man, please pray to God that our eyes should open’. My king and When the kidnappers came, they told me that their mission was to kill me. One of them said l was a big man, “so let us take him away and demand a ransom of N100 million others brought soldiers into the forest and they were shooting into the air to intimidate them to run away and leave me. I think what God did in response to my prayer was to prepare the way for my rescuers. They ran in different directions as they heard the overwhelming gunshots. I perceive that in the race for death and life, God opened their eyes, but they did not run in the direction the shots were coming from. Since they had run away, I started shouting for the search party to know the direction of where I was. When I came back and people heard the story of what happened, many gave their lives to Christ. I do not even know today whether the kidnappers were among those who gave their lives to Christ. If you do not know, God does his things in mysterious ways. Now, we have been doing our best to make sure Sapele is safe. Most of the people-causing problems in Sapele are not from here and we are still trying so that, with one voice, we can achieve our aim. Devil fights back Besides the kidnapping, demonic forces almost killed all my children. Four of them took ill and were admitted in hospital at the same time because I am into deliverance ministry. Every Wednesday, people come for deliverance from all parts of the world. Those that are barren, people who have problems in their educational life, those addicted to smoking, doing drugs, and so on come for the service. When God delivers them, the demons start fighting back, sometimes my cars will just go up in flames. Some days ago, three generators packed up. Last year, a generator blew up. That was the devil fighting back, but God will tell me the reasons for such happenings and tell me not to worry about them. If anybody tells you that the ministry is easy, it is a lie. What pastors go through sometimes is hell. We go through pains. When you rescue a man from the devil, be rest assured the devil will not rest. The problem with Sapele We have one problem in Sapele, disunity. Inside that disunity, we have discrimination, then that spirit of “it is not my business”. Many in Sapele still have this spirit of pull him down, they will do anything to pull you down, even in politics, we see them too. I was the President of Amukpe Christian Council for six years, about 38 denominations. I just handed over to Reverend Bukeno of Christ Chosen Church and we are trying to conquer these problems. Sapele is backward spiritually and in everything. Look at our only seaport, it is not functioning. AT&P is dead, Eternit is gone, and Life Flour Mill is struggling to stay afloat, but we are praying that things should move on. Thank God for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa. He really tried for Sapele. He is the only governor who has made us understand that Sapele is still a place to remember. In his first tenure, he really tried for Sapele. We pray that he does more in his second tenure. Sapele is, however, growing spiritually now, all we need is unity to move Sapele ahead, and prayers to make it recover its lost glory.
Currently, Imo is losing out in potential for eign exchange earning to places like Abuja, Lagos, and even Ghana, where the Igbo diaspora sometimes send their children for school and for cultural immersion. Imo could provide world class facilities that could attract and absorb these students and capture the market for education in Africa. We must compete with the world, not just with Nigeria. Dr. Sam Mbakwe used to say, “Education is Imo’s number one industry.” It used to be that the best buildings in every town in our land were the public school yards. Today, public school compounds are ghettoes. Dear Emeka, if you wish to leave a lasting legacy, change the face of Imo’s public schools radically. If I were you, I would quickly whip a bill through the State Assembly to create Six Zonal School Districts, representing two in each of the three Senatorial Districts of Imo, for ease of school administration and strategic education development. Each District, headed administratively by an appointed director, should have an elected School Board that will raise money, plan, build, and develop curriculum according to a state guideline, enforced by the office of the Chief Inspector of Education in the districts. School Administration will be regulated and quality control and assessment of teachers and school administration by the office of the district’s Chief Superintendent of Schools. A Facilities' Directorate under the Schools Management Board should be established for each District in conjunction with local governments for the upkeep, regular maintenance and upgrade of grounds, facilities and equipment for educational services all over Imo state. We must embark on teacher retraining programs, and adopt the Finnish model of teacher education and certification that makes teacher selection highly competitive. The Imo Teachers Program (ITP), must be the first in Nigeria to accord the same professional status that puts the training and remuneration of teachers at par with Doctors in order to attract the highest quality of manpower to the profession as it used to be. You must go into immediate discussion with the Teachers Union to ease out deadwood, establish the Teachers Benefit and Pensions Fund, a partner Pension scheme that will be contributory to assure teachers of continued high quality life after retirement. This must be made possible by an independent pension scheme, to be funded partly by the Imo Education and Research Trust Fund, which your administration must establish quickly by legislation, and partly by a dedicated part of the local property tax. You must restore the status of teachers as leaders of their communities and role models. Imo’s greatest resource is not its oil or gas or its land: it is its highly trained human resources. Much of these are underutilized. A central goal of your administration must be to begin a work program, starting with a three-step initiative: retrain, equip, and redeploy. You must begin the Imo state Credit Program to guarantee small credit loans and equipment financing for young entrepreneurs who wish to invest in Imo, or expand beyond Imo but with their operational head offices in Imo. You could, through your ministry of Trade & Technology begin the Business partnership matching grant, which should be able to encourage young startups to form partnerships and build long term ships collaborative in order to be relation- eligible to receive state, non-taxable business development take off grants. Your administration must quickly start the Imo State Community Enterprise Stabilization Fund to provide seed capital for specifically young businesses willing to invest and grow rural community economies- bakeries, small machine tools workshops, Fabrication Workshops, small Blacksmith Forges, small packaging and delivery services, etc. To achieve this, you must create a very strategic Division under the Imo Ministry of Trade, Industry and Technology, called the Division for “Small Business Administration” which should develop funding and Inspection models for such businesses funded by state grants. In partnership with the Ministry of Economic Development, and the Ministry of Labour in your administration, the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Technology should also start the “Imo Works” program. It should, in partnership with Local governments and Town Unions, and the federal agencies - the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), build a network of modern and highly equipped Community Workshops, recruit Field Training staff in small business management, Carpentry, metallurgy, auto body works, auto services, complex modern welding techniques, 3-D design and simulation, etc. to retrain Imo graduates who wish to engage and open their own businesses in these areas. Perhaps the more strategic initiative by your administration could also be to take the long needed steps to improve and develop the service economy/sector in Imo state. You must whip through the Imo Assembly the Imo Professional Services Regulation ordinances. This is urgent. Imo state has a great number of highly trained professionals who could A letter to Emeka Ihedioha (2) A central goal of As Britain is confused on BREXIT, let us cast a look back at the past. This article was first published in this column on September 11, 2016. It is relevant today as there is still no headway, almost three years after. Read on: When on June 23, 2016, the majority of British voters decided it was time to dump the European Union, they never expected it would take this long before the process that will ease them out will start. The joy of the announcement of the result in the early morning of June 24 had turned into a nightmare for them now. While some have openly regretted the decision to vote to “leg” it from the EU, the majority have no idea what is going to happen next because of the foot-dragging of their leaders. For some of them voting "out" was on sentiments rather than hard facts. Many have confessed if they were as educated as they are now on BREXIT, they probably would have voted otherwise. Going down history lane, we do recall that the BREX- ITEERS were apprehensive on the eve of the referendum, they, however, woke up to a surprise result in their favour a day after. They were not confident in the ability to “deliver” Britain from what they described as European bureaucracy. To further compound their situation, the exit polls on the eve of the referendum gave them no chance. The rest is now history. However, the way and manner the campaign for the exit was carried out portrayed the United Kingdom in a mad rush to leave the EU. The impression at this time was that immediately the referendum was won the process of disengaging from the club would begin. It was not to be. The only process that commenced immediately was the exit of David Cameron from 10 Downing Street. It did not take him so long to figure out that he should quit the stage. However, this has been the opposite for the citizens who voted based on the propaganda fed them by politicians on what Britain stands to gain in the event of an EU exit. Just after the shock result was announced, the EU leaders, disappointed by the negative vibes oozing from the BREX- ITEERS, were quick to remind Britain that there was no turning back. To them, exit means exit and the earlier the process is started the better. EU’s Jean-Claude Juncker advised that Britain should not delay its exit from the union. The eagerness of the EU leaders to see Britain start the process of exit is the opposite of the reaction of the BREXIT leaders. They could not hide their joy on the morning of June 24, as they jostled to claim responsibility for the victory. We all remember the powerful speech the outgoing leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP), Nigel Farage made after the result. He could not help himself when he giggled and announced that June 23 should be declared the Independence Day for Great Britain. You wonder what type of independence? He made himself very clear in his usual garrulous manner that it was independence from the European bureaucrats in Brussels. He said: “The EU is failing, the EU is dying. I hope we have knocked the first brick out of the wall.” Not too long after, the others, such as Boris Johnson and Michael Gove hurriedly came out, bare-chested to claim some of the accolades for the independent UK. While these ones looked dishevelled, supporters put it down to the stress associated with the campaign for the referendum. To keen political observers, it was not anything associated with stress, but a confusion arising from the cluelessness of what to make of the just announced result. And right on the result day, they showed they really have no idea of the magnitude of what they have led Britain into. Johnson said: “I want to reassure everybody that, in my view, as a result of this Britain will continue to be a great European power, leading discussions on defence and intelligence sharing and all the work that currently goes on to make your administration must be to begin a work program, starting with a threestep initiative: retrain, equip, and redeploy our world safer.” In the same vein, Gove wanted the benefits of Europe without being part of it. He declared: “We can build a new, stronger and more positive relationship with our European neighbours based on free trade and friendly co-operation.” Fast forward to the present, the strain and disappointment of the people that voted Leave are becoming visible. The joy and happiness that greeted the results of the referendum have now been replaced by weariness and confusion. The voters have suddenly realised that the dream provide much needed service delivery and stimulate the economy, and supply services to the whole of West Africa, and indeed the world in a growing, interconnected global economy. But the service sector in the East is highly underdeveloped and needs urgent stimulation. The environment must be carefully established. For instance, very often, work that requires professional services in the East are circumvented. Thus Engineering Services, Legal services, Architectural Services, Advertising and marketing services, Surveying, and such works that require professional services do not go to professionals. The results are often dismal, and that is aside from causing a great unemployment of our young trained professionals. It also drives value away from the East. Your administration must find the measure to change this. I suggest that one of your first actions in government must be to have a broad meeting with the leaders of all the Professional bodies in Imo state, from the Medical Association to the Council of Engineers, Architects, NBA, etc., to find the means to close this fundamental gap in the service sector, and leveraging that, provide the kind of support that will stimulate professional practice in Imo particularly, and thus the revival of the cru- SUNDAY VANGUARD, APRIL 14, 2019, PAGE 23 cial middle class that should lines from the North to the reflate social and economic East during the colonial period. Nothing stops them from life in Imo and widen your tax base. You can even aim building their own local metro system today. You can go at creating a niche service sector. into negotiations with the old To give an example, the ANAMCO in Enugu and Innosson Motors in Nnewi to small state of Connecticut is the insurance hub of the build the initial metro train United States. Connecticut’s coaches and Engine heads economy depends in great that will run on a dedicated extent to the insurance industry which is concentrat- abundant but unused Imo gas electric line powered by the ed there. Imo could very easily be the hub of the Mari- through the Ministry of Works reserves. You must then, time industry in West Africa, down to Walvis Bay and equip the Imo Central Work- and Transport, establish and the Cape of Good Hope, shop and Works yard – a vast from Port Services, Warehousing, Maritime Law serv- generation power tools that endeavor equipped with next ices, Maritime insurance, can design, fabricate, repair, Logistics, etc. We have the and produce any machinery leading department of Maritime Technology in Nigeristry of works as it used to be. or spares to be run by the minia at FUTO. We have the This Works yard should in manpower. It needs support due course have a division and rearticulation. under it that should be capable of designing, producing, But to absorb the large labour force will need a very repairing and refurbishing bold program: think public luxury train coaches, spares, work. I think the lynchpin and rail stock in Owerri, Imo program of your administration must be anchored on Metrolink, and in due course, state, to service the Imo three bold projects: the tri-city supplying a possible Eastrail initiative that will design, Services that should link all build and develop two new the major cities of the East cities – the city of Okigwe and from Port-Harcourt up to Asaba, looping through the port the city of Orlu into modern metropolises, linked to the city of Warri, to Onitsha, with capital city, Owerri, by a metro system, as an integrated de- Onitsha, Awka, Oji River, Enu- key Union stations in Asaba, velopment project. These gu, Abakiliki, Afikpo, Ovim, projects alone, properly done Okigwe, Umuahia, Aba, Owerrinta, Owerri, Orlu, Mgbi- can bring about N300 billion of private funds into Imo. For di and Ihiala to a regional the Okigwe city design, I recommend the model of Peter- course connect with the Uyo metro system. It should in due borough, New Hampshire or and Calabar Federal Rail Quebec, Canada. I also suggest that your administration work and exchange – built on links, to create an Eastern net- quickly enter into a joint development partnership with Municipal lines. the Federal, Regional and the Abia state government to For this aspect, you must join Uturu into this productive twin-city conurbation. Eastern Economic council to lead the initiative for a joint The Imo Modern Metro prepare grounds for the Economic integration of the system, a light rail link that will loop around Imo, connecting the three major city accorded the greatest urgen- East. This initiative must be epicenters, and provide 24/7 cy, and must constitute the movement that will ignite first directive you give to economic and social activity your secretary of government, to prepare an explor- in Imo. This should be another signal project whose economic implications should be randum of action. You want atory contact and a memo- vast and spectacular. Do not to create jobs? Circumvent go to China. Make it a direct Abuja, and help integrate the work project. We have the local Engineers, Architects, tially, a $15 trillion market, Eastern market. It is poten- Surveyors, Technologists, designers, and artisans to pull tially, the largest organic fully ignited. It has poten- this off. middle class in all of Africa. Igbo labourers laid the Rail (To be continued…) BREXIT: A long road to independence for UK The confusing part of the post-referendum is the quietness that has pervaded on this subject. The political leaders who were all over the places before the referendum are now shy to discuss when Britain should trigger Article 50 that will start the exit process may take a while to become a reality. Apart from this, there is a feeling of having been taken for a ride by the politicians. There are no more visible BREXIT leaders as they have all settled into new roles in the government. One has the feeling that these politicians who actively supported the Leave campaign did it for personal and selfish reasons. Some observers have described their action as a coup against the government of Cameron. The Theresa Mays, Amber Rudds and the Boris Johnsons are the beneficiaries of the referendum. The confusing part of the post-referendum is the quietness that has pervaded on this subject. The political leaders who were all over the places before the referendum are now shy to discuss when Britain should trigger Article 50 that will start the exit process. The Prime Minister, Theresa May, is not in any hurry to start this process. In fact, she made it clear that the EU exit would not be rushed. In her first visit to the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, May reiterated the intention of Britain to quit the union but still maintain the status quo. She declared: “So it’s good that we start from such a strong foundation and a position where both our countries believe in liberal markets and free trade and these should be the principles that guide us in the discussions ahead.” Interestingly some of the BREXIT leaders have been trying to pull the wool over the faces of other EU leaders. They are giving the impression that they want an exit without a loss of status in the continent or in the single market. The debate on when to trigger Article 50 is gathering. The prime minister has stated categorically that it would not be done this year. However, the minister in charge of BREX- IT, David Davis has suggested it should take place before the end of 2016. His famous line of “there will be no attempt to stay in the EU by the back door. No attempt to delay, frustrate or thwart the will of the British people,” speech has not in any way allayed the fears of the British people. The question on the lips of everybody is “when will British leaders be bold enough to follow through the wish of the people?” Observers believe that as it stands now, Theresa May would have wished there was no EU exit burden on her Prime Ministerial “neck”. She would have loved the job without the headache of BREXIT. For the BREXIT voters, the wait is still long. The independent Great Britain they voted for a few months ago may take longer than envisaged to become a reality. Frustrations may set in, but there is really nothing they can do than wait patiently as the leaders slowly plan or pretend to plan the exit.
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