Prophet Ernest Chukwuemeka Nwankwo, General overseer of Holy
Family, Happy Family Ministry has opened up concerning the allegations of a
woman who claimed to be a parishioner at his church and who was caught
kidnapping a young child in Ikorodu, Lagos purportedly to sell to the Prophet
for N2.5 million. ICYMI Read Here
In this interview with Vanguard’s Crime Guard, Nwankwo tells
his side of the story:
My ministry is
located at 319, Lagos road, Majudeen in Ikorodu. We carry out prayers and
deliverance in the ministry.
The ministry
started in 1997. We have no less than 15000 members with a spread in virtually
all the major cities in Nigeria including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
I started as a member of Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement before I
established my own ministry. I am 49 yrs.
I do not know how
these allegations of ritual actions against me started. My ministry has existed
for 17 years and we have never been associated with any bad thing or any
untoward allegation. We have been doing well in carrying out God’s work since
we came into existence. People troop to our ministry, we organize children’s
day for over 30,000 children all over our branches every year. In Ikorodu, we
normally have not less than 10,000 children during the day.
We have hosted
these children since we stated and we have never had any problem for more than
10 years now. We have equally been doing well in all our activities, we have
rehabilitation center where mad people are healed. Relations of such people
bring them to our ministry and also stay with them until they are healed after
which they will go home. We do not charge them, we feed them free. So, the
ministry has been flourishing in all our branches.
“When I got to the
office on Wednesday, June 15 to do some work and leave for Abuja for another
programme, within 20 minutes, around 7.30am, a group of people, armed with
dangerous weapons invaded our ministry, breaking down everything at sight. They
also descended on our members who were over 50 in attendance for the morning
worship.
They were over 300
and were ferociously destroying all the properties and manhandling everybody.
It was like hell was let loose on us. They were armed to the teeth and were
unrestrained in their bid to destroy everything in the ministry.
They not only
subjected our members to serious beating, they also took all their bags and
stripped all the women and children naked. I was inside the office when they
invaded the place but they later broke into my office and descended on me. We
were all seriously wounded and our bodies covered with blood.
Surprisingly, four
of the hoodlums took pity on me and rescued me from their clutches as they were
hitting my head with cutlasses and dangerous weapons. They took me to Owutu
police station where I made a statement. When they asked me how it started, I
could not explain but simply told them that some hoodlums invaded our ministry
for no just cause.
It was while we
were there that the people that rescued me told us that a woman claimed I sent
her to kidnap somebody’s child. It was like a fairy tale to me. Before the
police I asked for the identity of the woman and why she claimed I told her to
kidnap somebody and they said it was for ritual purposes. After I recovered from the shock, the
policemen then advised that I should go and treat myself because I was bleeding
profusely as a result of the beating.
I then proceeded
to the hospital for treatment only to start reading in the papers the following
day a lot of other damaging stories and that I was on the run. I personally
reported to the police at Owutu in Ikorodu after treating myself and also
personally reported at Panti the following day on a Monday.
By Thursday
morning, unfounded rumours were flying every where. On Friday, while I was
going to treat myself, I quickly sent my lawyer to Panti after hearing the
rumours flying everywhere about me and that the case was transferred to Panti.
My lawyer told
them that I personally reported to the police at Owute after the incident and
that I was allowed to go and treat myself. He then wrote an undertaking to
produce me the next Monday and we all came to Panti that Monday straight from
the General hospital Ikeja where I had an x-ray. Even one of my ribs was said to have cracked
and I sustained other serious injuries.
I can’t remember
seeing or meeting the woman before. A lot of people come to my ministry so, it
will be very difficult for me to know all of them. However, the police at Panti
interrogated both of us and, in fact, when they brought her before me, I could
not remember seeing her in life and I told the policemen this fact. I can’t
even remember whether she called me on telephone or not because I cannot say
the number of people that call me on telephone for my number is open and given
to people freely to help in solving their spiritual problems.
Nevertheless, the
police interrogated both of us, she claimed that Holy spirit told her that I
should give her N2.5 million, and that she came and told me to give her the
money but I told her that I had no money, that she came back again to me and
requested for the money and I then told her to go and bring a child before I
will give her the money.
I then asked her
where we discussed this, if she has any evidence to show that she ever visited
my ministry because visitors to the ministry always register their names before
seeing me, or if there is any other evidence to show that we discussed that kind
of thing. I punctured her story because I cannot understand what concerns me
with her message with her Holy spirit.
Read more @Vanguardngr.com
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