OPM extends lifeline to South African returnees with free housing, skills training

The General Overseer of the Omega Power Ministries, Apostle Chibuzor Chinyere, has announced a fresh round of support for Nigerians returning from South Africa, unveiling free housing and vocational training programmes aimed at helping them rebuild their lives.

In a statement shared on his social media platforms, the cleric said he had received information that another group of Nigerian returnees had arrived from South Africa.

According to him, married couples who have no homes to return to in Nigeria will be accommodated free of charge in a housing estate acquired specifically for them by the church.

“The OPM estate is 100 per cent free of charge,” he said, adding that the church currently operates 18 free housing estates for indigent Nigerians who cannot afford to pay rent.

To facilitate their relocation, Apostle Chibuzor disclosed that a bus branded “South African Returnees” has been deployed to convey eligible families from the airport to the church for documentation before transporting them to the estate.

He appealed for patience over feeding arrangements, explaining that discussions with a catering provider were still ongoing.

“Please don’t be angry. We have not yet concluded with the catering woman, so you will feed yourselves till next week when we would have concluded with another catering woman,” he said.

Beyond accommodation, the cleric announced that single male returnees would be enrolled free of charge at the church’s multi-skill acquisition centre, the OPM Free School of Skills, to enable them to acquire employable vocational skills.

He explained that many of the returnees lost their businesses and livelihoods in South Africa and now face an uncertain future after returning to Nigeria.

The training programmes, fully funded through tithes and offerings from OPM Church, cover more than 20 vocational and technical disciplines, including pipeline welding, scaffolding, toiletries production, hat and bag making, shoe making, tailoring, oil rigging operations, marine engineering, oil well drilling, pipeline fitting, instrumentation and control, ICT, defensive driving, catering, furniture making, health, safety and environment, paint production, hairdressing, make-up artistry, argon welding, and barbering.

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According to Apostle Chibuzor, participants will receive internationally recognised certificates at the end of their training at no cost. He added that the church would also assist graduates in securing employment opportunities within Nigeria and abroad, particularly in the oil and gas sector.

He noted that OPM has previously facilitated employment for several church members in oil companies in Saudi Arabia and is preparing another recruitment exercise for jobs in the Middle East.

The cleric said the initiative is designed to ensure that the returnees are fully reintegrated into society. He explained that while children of the returnees had already been enrolled in one of the church’s 43 free schools, their mothers were being assisted to establish businesses, while those requiring medical attention had received treatment at the church’s free hospital.

“It would be balanced if the men are also settled so they don’t go into crime because an idle man is the devil’s workshop,” he said.

Apostle Chibuzor maintained that the housing, education, healthcare, and vocational training programmes are entirely financed through tithes and offerings contributed by members of OPM Church.