Femi Fani-Kayode: How TB Joshua’s church building was bombed [Part 1]

A few weeks ago I tweeted that I would write an essay about the bombing of a building at Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua’s Synagogue Church Of All Nations (SCOAN).

Though I have been writing essays and contributing to the public discourse for over 27 years, I have never received the number of threats from known and unknown sources as I did after that tweet.

Yet I am not deterred. As a matter of fact such threats always strengthen my resolve to stand firm, do the right thing and dig even deeper.

I am a servant of truth and the voice of the voiceless: I cannot be intimidated and I will not be silenced.

Part of my calling is to speak truth to power, to stand up for the oppressed and to speak up for the victims of barbarity, persecution, wickedness and injustice and I will not shy away from doing so on this occasion

Prophet TB Joshua started his ministry 30 years ago in 1987 when he founded his Church. He is a strong and credible voice in the Body of Christ in Nigeria.

He is a respected and much-loved Christian leader who is doing great works and wonders for the Kingdom of God both in and outside of our country. He is revered in many nations in the world, including numerous countries in South America, South East Asia, Africa, Europe, the far East, Israel, Lebanon, India and the United States of America where he is a regular visitor that is welcomed and received with much love and enthusiasm.

Such is his following that it is on record that out of every 10 foreigners that visit Nigeria every year, 6 of them have come to spend time in T.B. Joshua’s Church and receive ministration from him.

Yet despite all these laudable achievements it is clear that he has many enemies.

I am not a member of his Church, I have never worshipped there and neither do I have any reason to defend him or to speak up for him other than the fact that, in my humble opinion, in this particular case and matter, he and his Church members are undoubtedly the primary targets and victims of injustice, wickedness and what can only be described as nothing less than pre-meditated and cold-blooded mass murder.

They are also the subjects of one of the greatest cover-ups in Nigerian history and of a massive and well-orchestrated disinformation campaign.

It says a lot for him, his resilience, his ministry, his calling, his members and the enormous amount of strength and grace that he enjoys from the Living God that, despite the sheer hell that he has been put through as a consequence of these ugly events and tragic affair, he has refused to be broken or silenced.

Rather than capitulate he has risen to the occasion, gone from strength to strength, stoically accepted the numerous challenges that he has been faced with and stood firm in the preaching of the gospel and in the battle against the Kingdom of darkness.

He has also refused to be cowed and instead has stood-by, comforted and assisted the families of those who lost their loved ones in this brutal attack as best as he could.

The truth is that whether his detractors wish to admit it or not, T.B. Joshua has weathered the storm well and he remains one of the most respected and celebrated Pastors and men of God in Nigeria today and certainly one of the most internationally-acknowledged and acclaimed of them all.

The truth is that there is nothing that is ordinary about this man. It appears that the more his haters (and there are many of them in Nigeria) throw bricks at him and seek his downfall, the more he grows, prospers and increases. Only God can do this for any human being.

Like those that are healed of numerous ailments by the Holy Spirit in his Church, his strength and survival and his uncanny readiness and ability to continue to spread love and charity to the poor, the weak, the challenged, the despised and the helpless all over the world, regardless of his own personal challenges, is not only exemplary but also borders on the miraculous.

The truth is that if the events that I am about to describe had happened to ANY other person or man of God in this country I am not sure that they would have been able to survive it.

To all intents and purposes Joshua is a mystery. He is a modern-day enigma.

He is a profoundly good man whose humility is second to none, who is deeply courageous and who is filled with the light and power of the Spirit of God.

Yet his towering status, his selfless ministry and his good works is hardly the point here. If what he was subjected to three years ago had happened to anyone else and if the details were brought to my attention I would have written about it and exposed it in exactly the same way that I am about to do now.

Today I present the first and second parts of this essay. I have almost finished part three, which is the most telling of them all and, once done, I will release it after those whose names that I have mentioned have been duly consulted and informed.

Here I have written what I believe is the truth. I have risked my life and the life of my sources by doing so but I have no regrets.

It is for us to do as we are led by the Holy Spirit and it is for God to protect us. I leave all to Him and I give Him the glory.

Here we go.

One of the single greatest atrocities perpetuated by rogue elements in our intelligence agencies in modern history was the blowing up of a guest house in Prophet TB Joshua’s church which resulted in the death of approximately 116 people, most of whom were foreigners. This took place on September 12th 2014