For dissociating himself and the Redeem Christian Church of God, RCCG, from an “offensive and divisive audio Compact Disc” that is being circulated by certain political Pastors in the country, the All Progressives Congress, APC, has commended Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of RCCG.

Making the statement in Lagos on Monday, 6 October, 2014, was the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, saying the pastor has “again exhibited his characteristic exceptional leadership” and shown what religion should be about, which is love, rather than hate and incendiary statements.

The opposition party expressed satisfaction that the RCCG general overseer specifically asked the RCCG Pastors to ignore the contents of the audio CD, especially all the references to political parties, including the APC.

“The GO’s statement, in his response to the APC, which had written to protest the divisive and corrosive statements contained in the audio CD, which has been smuggled into some RCCG parishes, made it clear that the RCCG is neutral and apolitical, and that it prays for all irrespective of political persuasion or creed.

”We in the APC are delighted at the GO’s prompt action and statement that the RCCG did not endorse divisive comments in any form or shape, that it has sons and daughters in all political parties, and that the allegations contained in the audio CD are wickedly false, unsubstantiated, ill-conceived and mischievous.

”Equally satisfying is the GO’s directive asking everyone in possession of the audio CDs to return them, and the directive to the Church’s Pastors to communicate such to their respective congregations immediately,” the statement read.

On the audio CD, allegedly produced by one Pastor Bosun Emmanuel, the party wondered why a man of God would engage in what it described as “outright lies to propagate hatred, incite Christians against Muslims so brazenly, as if the adherents of both religions are not children of the same God.”

It faulted the cleric for using “the platform of the church to campaign for the Peoples Democratic Party while seeking to destroy the APC.”

The party statement added: “in a country where the citizenry, whether Christians or Muslims, have been shortchanged by greedy, selfish and clueless political leadership, a Pastor went on record as saying President Goodluck Jonathan has performed 100%, while at the same time demonizing and denigrating the APC as an ‘Islamic Party’ without a scintilla of proof. Much as he struggled to couch his inflammatory and discordant message in flowery lies, it is clear that he was sponsored to inseminate lies to shore up the dwindling fortunes of the ruling party.

”Where in the world has an Islamic Party been led by a Christian? Where in the world has the membership of an Islamic Party been populated by Christians and Muslims? Why would a Pastor whose primary purpose is to preach the Gospel (good news) now make himself available, for whatever reason, as a tool to disseminate lies and bad news?

”Had this Pastor any sense of history, he would have realized how the propagation of hatred, as he is currently doing, led to the killing of over 800,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutu in Rwanda in 1994. This Pastor made it seem as if the terrorists called Boko Haram are fighting the cause of Nigerian Muslims, when he knows deep down that this evil group has not spared
Muslims either.

”We have said it several times: Boko Haram is a clear and present danger to Christians as it is to Muslims. Boko Haram is as dangerous to the rich as it is to the poor, it is as dangerous to the North as it is to the South.

“Simply put, Boko Haram is an enemy of Nigeria and all Nigerians, irrespective of their religion or ethnicity, must unite to defeat the terrorists.”

The RCCG was founded in 1952 by Nigerian pastor Josiah Akindayomi (1909–1980) after he had been involved in several other churches.

In the early 1970s Akindayomi started to look for an educated successor who was not at that time a member of the church. He chose Enoch Adeboye, a lecturer in mathematics at the University of Lagos, who joined the church in 1973.

Adeboye initially became one of the interpreters translating Akindayomi’s sermons from Yoruba to English.

He was ordained a pastor of the church in 1975, and his appointment as leader of the church was formalized by the posthumous reading of Akindayomi’s sealed pronouncement.