Poverty responsible for insecurity in Nigeria —Bishop Ademola

Bishop Abiodun Ebenezer Ademola is the Bishop of African Church, Ibadan North Diocese, Ibadan,
Oyo State. In this interview with TAYO GESINDE, he speaks on how to tackle insecurity issues in Nigeria, the role of the church in nation-building and what Nigerians can do to ensure they elect the right people into power in 2023, among other issues. Excerpts:

Nigeria is known to be a religious country, yet many evils are being perpetrated in the land. What is responsible for this?

We should not equate religiousity with spirituality as that is the problem with Nigeria.  Many people are religious but not spiritual. People are mounting speakers when they don’t need it. The usefulness of speakers from what we learnt is to call people to prayer and not to be blaring what you are doing so people can know you are in your place of worship; that is religiousity. If you are spiritual, you won’t want others to know what you are doing, especially when fasting. Yes, Nigeria is filled with many religiously-minded people, but it does not translate to spirituality. If you are spiritual, you don’t show off. Everything you do, you do it to the glory of God and not to please any man. We need to be spiritual if we want things to work in this country. To do this, we need to be more serious with the things of God. We should be determined to serve God in spirit and in truth.

Insecurity is a big challenge in Nigeria today. Some Christians were abducted recently. Some priests have also been killed. What is responsible for this and what is the way out?

As a Sociologist, I will say poverty is responsible for insecurity. Looking at the army of the unemployed youths in the country, we will see that we are sitting on a keg of gun powder. The second reason is because some people are trying to lord it over others. Some tribes believe they are better than the others. If you try to force yourself on others, the people you are lording it over will react. That is what is happening in Nigeria today. No state is really peaceful in Nigeria, as all the states are facing one issue or the other. To solve the problem of insecurity, the first thing is to provide jobs for our teeming unemployed youths. We have the resources. Nigeria is well endowed to feed itself and take care of its citizens. I believe we don’t need two houses – National Assembly and House of Representatives, we only need one. If we collapse the two houses, the money we are spending on them can be used to construct good roads, world-class hospitals and so on. Also, the government too needs to search itself. Robbers cannot be attacking one house all the time. The people living in that building must search themselves.

What do you think the role of the church is in nation building?

One of the roles of the church in nation-building is to advise the government, and we have been doing that. But are they listening? Are they abiding by what we tell them? That is another issue entirely. In the olden days, they used to listen, but today, when you talk, they try to settle you and if you refuse to be settled, they will see you as being stubborn and label you an opposition.  The second responsibility of the church to nation-building is to allow its members to participate in governance. If our members are in government, we can call them to order when they are not doing well. Those who are business-oriented should continue to contribute their quota to the development of the nation. Churches are involved in education – they have primary, secondary and tertiary institutions, they are paying taxes and other levies. These are part of nation-building.

How did COVID-19 pandemic affect the Church and how were you able to adapt?

COVID-19 was God’s way of calling our attention to the fact that we needed to slow down. We really did slow down but it also affected the economy. However, we cut our coat according to our cloth. We tried to manage our resources to survive. It is only God that knows when it will leave so we need to protect ourselves, use your facemask and maintain social distancing.

Many young people are leaving the orthodox churches for  the Pentecostal. What are you doing to stop them from leaving the African Church and for those that left to return?

It is through our open programmes. It is true they left for new generation churches, but they are trooping back. There is an organ called ‘The African Church Youth Evangelical Ministry (TACEM)’. That organ speaks the language they speak. Moving up and down is not good, they should stay where they are and be patient. Their parents that they are complaining are not listening to them will leave the stage for them and it will be their turn to take over.

The 2023 elections are round the corner, what advice do you have for Nigerians on the kind of leaders they should elect?

My counsel to Nigerians is, if possible, look for new people who have never smelt anything called governance in Nigeria and vote for them. Do we have such people? Yes. Will they allow them to get there is another thing. Nigerians should get their voter cards and vote people they know will give them quality representation. It is not a matter of party. I hope and believe many politicians will lose in 2023 because their money and power will fail them. Christians should not shy away from politics. If you are interested, but you don’t have the financial means to do so, let people know. Some communities may end up sponsoring people in 2023.

When and how did you receive the call into ministry?

My journey into the ministry was a long one. While growing up, my mother told me that a prophet told her when she was pregnant with me that ‘you have a very powerful man of God in your womb’. I was not bothered about it as I was not thinking of going into ministry at the time. However, one thing led to the other and I found myself obtaining the form of the School of Theology. So, to answer your question, it was prophesied before I was born and the prophecy was fulfilled when I went to the School of Theology. When my friends in primary and secondary school learnt that I became a priest, they were not surprised because I had always loved doing the things of the Lord.

What did you study at the university and did you do any secular job before becoming a reverend?

I studied Sociology at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in Kaduna State, and also hold a Masters degree in Sociology from the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos State. I later obtained Doctor of Ministry from Crowther Postgraduate University in Abeokuta, Ogun State. I worked for three or four years before I became a man of God. I was trained to be a reverend and up till now, one still needs to consult the Bible, pray and go to the mountain to seek the face of the Lord. It is not easy to be a man of God, if genuinely you are called by God. That is why you will observe that those really called by God don’t make noise. And if they don’t make noise, what they say and how God uses them, you will notice that they are being used of God.  The ministry needs to be studied, it is not how people view it from the outside that we on the inside view it.

Like you said, the way people view ministry is different from what it is. Many people believe that if one wants to make money today, all that needs to be done is to start a church and make a lot of money from tithes and offerings. What do you have to say about this?

As far as I know, for orthodox churches, ministry is not the quickest way to make money, because you will be paid just your salaries and allowances. And God be kind to you, as a bishop, you will be given a car and a house. However, if you have a ministry and you know how to package things, you will make money and the money belongs to you. But in orthodox churches, money from tithes and offerings belong to the church. From there, assessment is paid and it is from there that my salary is paid unlike in a new generation church, where the founder may be the one in charge of the money and takes whatever he wants from it. That amounts to recklessness.  Also, to make money, some pastors look for people in government, but we don’t look for them.

If they need us for anything, they will look for us, especially if they want to hear the truth. But if they want to hear sugar-coated words that will suit them, they know where to go and that is why we have issues in the society. The clergies are not checkmating the state because the state has allowed the clergy to be enjoying from it.

Advice for Nigerian youths?

I want us to admit that we, the elderly ones, have failed them. When President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari became heads of state of this country, they were in their late 30s and early 40s, and they are still in government many years later when they should have retired. They are occupying the positions their children and grandchildren should be occupying. They should admit that they have failed the youths. It is after that is done that we can now appeal to them. They too should use their intellect and ICT to excel. We learnt that very soon, petroleum won’t be used to power cars and so on. They should be focusing their attention on what is next after petroleum. They should also be spiritual. They cannot get anything except God gives it to them.

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