Bishop David Oyedepo
According to a report by The Nation, millions of naira allegedly
stolen by some highly placed officials of the Living Faith Church
Worldwide, a.k.a. Winners Chapel, drew the presiding Bishop of the
church, Dr. David Oyedepo, into a rage at the empowerment summit
organised for ordained workers of the church last Saturday.
The annual event, which is usually attended by pastors, zonal ministers
and their assistants, deacons, ushers and other ordained workers of the
church, where they are acquainted with the church’s programme for the
year, was presided over by Oyedepo, while his deputy, Bishop David
Abioye, was also in attendance. Both men ministered powerfully. Oyedepo
ministered on service, while Abioye spoke on consistency in service.
Towards the end of the programme, however, Oyedepo took some time to
talk about the goings on in the church. He revealed how some very high
up officials, mainly accountants, had looted the church’s treasury.
The Bishop could not hide his disappointment that professionals trusted
by the church to prevent fraud turned themselves into a network of
fraudsters.
Expressing his disappointment in the errant church officials, who have
since been relieved of their positions in the church, he said: “Can you imagine accountants perpetrating fraud in the house of God?
“We had no choice but to dismiss them. You can imagine top church
officials engaging in doubling figures and other dubious practices.
“Even after we dismissed them, we discovered more fraud.
“Those who should discover the fraud were the ones involved in it. One of them refused to confess until the last minute.”
He admonished the church members against employing the dismissed
officials. He said he had to tell everyone present because he knew the
dismissed officials “will come to you for employment.”
“Don’t employ them and don’t sympathise with them. Whoever sympathises with the wicked is wicked himself.”
Dead silence fell on the gathering as the Bishop reiterated: “Don’t sympathise with any perpetrator of fraud, otherwise you are a partaker of the evil act.”