Encomium
– As Christ Embassy repossess property
THERE is palpable tension in Christendom as the land dispute between Pastor Enoch Adeboye’s Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) and Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy is about to escalate.
The fear is predicated on the rumored plan of Christ Embassy to commence the development of the vast land which spreads across Oloke, Asese, Maba and Gideon villages along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State.
Oyakhilome’s men reportedly mounted their bill on the contentious land days back. A move insiders said would spark off another round of war between the two very popular Pentecostal churches. Having done this without a challenge from RCCG, ENCOMIUM Weekly was told that Christ Embassy will, any moment from now, do the ground breaking ceremony of their camp ground which had been delayed for year as a result of the protracted case.
Contacted on Sunday, July 13, 2014, to confirm or debunk if the land tussle has been resolved amicably, an official of RCCG, Pastor Kunmi Oyekunle said the matter is still on.
He said Christ Embassy cannot lay claim to the disputed land since it doesn’t belong to them.
But reacting to the recent development, Christ Embassy told our reporter it was immaterial whether or not they have started developing their property. What is important, according to them is that the land belongs to the church that is now in almost all the continents in the world.
“I don’t know the purpose of this phone chat. What is important is that we have a land there (at the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway). Whenever we are ready, we would build our camp ground there,” the Christ Embassy’s official, Pastor Kenneth said.
In March 2013, there was a big fracas between ‘mercenaries’ of the two leading Pentecostal churches on the controversial land where some allegedly lost their lives.
It was alleged then that the Christ Embassy thugs led by one notorious Omo Onile (a native land speculator), Lukman Jimoh a.k.a Ogo Oluwa to intimidate Pastor Adeboye’s men. The matter was so serious that RCCG had to petition the Inspector General of Police (IGP), asking him to wade into the matter which was going out of hand.
The church, in the said petition, while recounting how they came about the property, said that despite the fact that the land falls under the government acquisition area, the church had in June 1999, paid ratification fees for the land to late Alhaji Tajudeen Ogoluwa (Lukman’s father), who gave the church a Deed of Surrender signed by him and witnessed by one Waidi Ogunsesan. RCCG added that it was also given allocation of the land for 99 years by the Ogun State Government in a letter signed by the Director-General, Bureau of Lands and Survey, Surveyor Gbenga Ogunnoike.
RCCG equally alleged that Ogun State Government issued a Certificate of Occupancy with the number 025748, dated November 7, 2006 and signed by the governor.
The IG, it was further gathered, directed the Ogun State Police Command Headquarters, Eleweran to resolve the matter between the two clerics (Pastors Adeboye and Oyakhilome).
Nothing had been heard about the matter until information recently filtered in that Christ Embassy’s signboard is now conspicuously placed on the controversial property, a move RCCG have vowed to resist.
– UCHE OLEHI
