Dear Kali
Gwegwe,
I read your article about Pastor Osinbajo published in Daily Post of
December, 30, 2014, with much interest. I wonder how you formed your opinion
that Pastor Osinbajo is sending a message that ‘politics-not Christianity can
help bring out the best in men’. I also wonder how you came to the conclusion
that the ‘desire for political power is what is making him to do what he could
not do as a pastor’. Misleading articles like yours have been the bane of
religious and political unity in our nation.
It would
be helpful if you knew what Pastor Osinbajo has been doing as pastor. Pastor
Osinbajo is closer to the poor and downtrodden than you think. That he engages
people in BRT buses is not a sudden change of behaviour on account of politics
as you have asserted. That he is seen today interacting with men perceived to
be ordinary is not a sudden change of behaviour as you have asserted. It is not
news to see a pastor of the RCCG engaged in bus evangelism or door to door
evangelism or preaching to the poor. Pastor Osinbajo does this routinely.
What is news is that a Vice Presidential candidate is humble enough to enter a public bus to interact with men perceived to be ordinary. Pastor Osinbajo’s good activities have now become a centre of attraction, because his nomination as the Vice-Presidential candidate of the APC means that he is now under the radar of the media. Pastor Osinbajo can no longer do good quietly without being noticed! That is not his fault!
Pastor Osinbajo is like a newly found kaleidoscopic treasure that continues to amaze everyone with his profile and lovable personality. This amazement is not strange especially against the backdrop that the idiosyncracy of the average Nigerian has been so abused with much hypocrisy that they have lost the sense of what it means to ‘practice what you preach’. Pastor Osinbajo is not the traditional hypocritical politician. He is just being his humble self by interacting with men perceived to be ordinary. His entrance into the presidential race has not changed him.
That his service to God is now news worthy on account of his political aspiration does not warrant any attack on his person and the quality of his service to God. Those who hide under the gospel to pass judgment and misinform people constitute the resistance many have to the gospel of Jesus. They polarise the church and society and their conduct has never helped humanity. I do not think you want to be counted among such people.
Engaging in mudslinging against Pastor Osinbajo without knowing his antecedents is unfair. I do not think you intended to be so unfair. But I may be wrong, because your allegation that Pastor Osinbajo ‘is probably’ among the legion of Christian leaders that criticize Prophet T.B. Joshua, exposes some bias and bigotry. I wonder where that allegation is coming from.
I feel a sense of brotherly love to you and citizens of our country, likely to be misled by your article, to set the records straight. I am sure you and your readers will discover how judgmental your article was, after reading this rejoinder. You certainly do not know the extent of Pastor Osinbajo’s impact in the lives of the poor and downtrodden before now. I have known Pastor Osinbajo since 2006 and will outline a few things I know about him that contradict what you have told the whole world.
You will
be surprised to know that Pastor Osinbajo has always identified with the poor
and downtrodden in society. He has never made a public show of his good works
like the hypocritical politicians we were used to before now. I have had the
privilege of visiting the church he pastors at various times. His ministry is
based on the principle that care for the material needs of the poor is the
central focus of the ministry of Jesus Christ and must be that of every serious
Christian.
You will
also be surprised to know that the same Pastor Osinbajo, before now, has
traversed the slums in Lagos including Ikota and Makoko (slums worse than the
popular Ajegunle), interacting with the poorest of the poor, leading them to
Christ and meeting their needs. Pastor Osinbajo did not only associate with the
poor in these slums, he set up learning centres for them through the LIBERTY
SCHOOLS project.
Pastor Osinbajo runs 10 ministries in his church entirely devoted to the poor. I will mention just a few. MERCYCROSS gives medical insurance to children of the poor. LIBERTY SCHOOLS with branches at Obanikoro, Makoko and Ikota slums have about 400 children of the poor in school already. WOMEN ALIVE provides free pre and post natal care for underprivileged women. PARENTS-WITHOUT-BORDERS engages in parenting and mentoring for boys and girls in remand homes.
Pastor
Osinbajo also supports many initiatives that feed, accommodate, rehabilitate
and sponsor the education and healthcare of abandoned street children and
widows. I know about The Orderly Society Trust, which he set up with his wife
and The Destiny Trust Children Foundation. There is also the EXCEL PROJECT a
reading and writing programme in 40 public schools. There are more of such
initiatives focused on the poor, which he supports and identifies with.
An
interesting fact you do not have is that Pastor Osinbajo and his wife, Dolapo,
before, during and after his tenure as Attorney-General of Lagos State,
consistently engaged beggars, drug addicts and societal rejects under the
bridges of Lagos. Many of them have come to the knowledge of Christ, are
gainfully employed and married today. I recommend to you, Mrs. Dolapo
Osinbajo’s book, ‘They Call Me Mama’. I am sure you will enjoy reading the book.
I admire
your admission that truth is ‘just’ and ‘correctional’, which according to you,
formed the fundamental basis of your article. You owe Nigerians and your fellow
Christian brethren an unreserved apology for going to town with so much
ignorance and false notions about Pastor Yemi Osinbajo. Just as you have held
Pastor Osinbajo responsible for his actions, (which are consistent with his
Christian ethics) I also hold you responsible for your misleading article.
Those who make public comments owe the public the obligation of truth.
This article originally titled "Re: Kali Gwegwe: Pastor Osinbajo – Giving Christianity a bad name" was written by
Elo Adhekpukoli and first appeared in Daily Post on December 31, 2015. Photos added by OU Journal.
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