The Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has risen in defence of the embattled founder of the Omega Fire Ministry, Johnson Suleman, saying the allegations of adultery against him by a Canada-based Nigerian, Stephanie Otobo, was a product of a “high level conspiracy.”
Apostle Suleman as he his fondly called, has been embroiled in a sex scandal, following Ms. Otobo’s allegations that she had sexual relationship with the married, outspoken cleric.
Ms. Otobo has since called for police investigation accusing the cleric of deceptively making her lose a pregnancy she had for him.
Mr. Suleman has consistently denied the allegations, saying it was a witch hunt following his comments against the killing of Christians by herdsmen in Kaduna State.
In a statement on Wednesday by his Special Assistant on Public Communication and New Media, Lere Olayinka, the Ekiti governor claimed that there was a conspiracy against Mr. Suleiman which was meant to silence his critical and principled voice of truth and dissent in a nation fast becoming a one-party state.
“This was the same way they tried to drag the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christians Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye in the mud,” Mr. Fayose, a critic of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress, said.
“The whole world was aghast at how they insulted and ridiculed the highly-revered RCCG General Overseer. But for the outcry from all over the world, they almost bundled out Pastor Adeboye from his position as RCCG General Overseer and could have even arrested the General Overseer of Winners Chapel, David Oyedepo.
“I stand by Apostle Suleiman and other men of God being directly or indirectly persecuted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) cabal.”
The governor alleged that there were plans to destroy the church by challenging every vocal, principled, and popular Christian cleric one after the other.
He charged the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and other Christian bodies to speak out against the “orchestrated attempt to destroy the Church and respected Church leaders in Nigeria.”
He also called for the arrest and prosecution of herdsmen involved in killings across the country.
“Should it not interest Nigerians and the international community that up till today, none of those herdsmen that killed thousands of Nigerians in Benue, Enugu, Delta, Ogun, Plateau and Kaduna States have been arrested?” Fayose said.
“Even those arrested in connection with the murder of an Abuja-based female pastor, Eunice Elisha, have been released.”
Mr. Fayose said he wondered why all the adultery allegations and blackmail against Mr. Suleman surfaced only after he spoke against the killing of Christians in Southern Kaduna and his subsequent encounter with the State Security Services, SSS.
“Anyone who has a case against any man of God should swear an oath, proceed to the law court and face the rigours, rather than engage in media trial and character assassination, which have become the hallmark of this administration,” he said.
Mr. Fayose, who has in the past prevented the arrest of Mr. Suleman, also asked his supporters to declare their support for the cleric.
Courtesy: PREMIUM TIMES
There’s clearly something fishy here. Time shall tell.
Time will tell