The Presiding Bishop of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, also known as Winners Chapel, Bishop David Oyedepo, has called on the Nigerian government not to interfere with churches with the newly-signed amended Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), 2020.
The cleric, airing his views on the matter advised the Federal Government to expunge the part of the CAMA that grants the supervising minister the power to remove the board of trustees of churches without recourse to the court.
President Muhammadu Buhari, had on August 7, 2020 signed into law, the Companies and Allied Matters Bill, 2020, which was recently passed by the National Assembly, replacing the CAMA 1990.
Oyedepo faulted CAMA, delivering a sermon on Sunday, at his church auditorium popularly known as the Faith Tabernacle in Ota, Ogun State during the first service on of the church after COVID-19 lockdown.
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He said: “In the document, they said the Registrar-General can remove the trustees without recourse to the court. Don’t try it. This must be from somebody who woke up from the wrong side of the bed after dreaming. The person must have drafted that aspect in the bill as their custom is.
“I am 51 years old in this thing (Christianity), don’t try it. I have been with Jesus for some time and I am sent as a prophet to nations. That a minister can remove the trustees and close the accounts of the church and that does not require any court validation. Please, note, this is a warning from the Lord.
“You don’t know the strength of any man until you molest his wife. The cheapest way for a leader to lose respect is to insult the wife of his worker. He will tell you to take your job and insult you thoroughly.
“Please know that the church is the bride of Christ. We are returning home someday for the big marriage supper of the lamb. It is wisdom to quickly expunge that part that affects the religious body from that document. It is only safe to do that.
“In fact, they said they would appoint managers. So, they can appoint occultists to be managers of church affairs when we are alive. Don’t try it when this crude prophet is alive, when all the sons of the prophets are alive, don’t try it, this is a timely advice.”
