Emmanuel Abodunrin
The Olukoyi of Ikoyiland, Oba Yisau Oyetunji Otunla, has corroborated the Cherubim & Seraphim Unification Church of Nigeria, the umbrella body of C & S churches worldwide, which recently denied media reports that one “Prophet” Segun Philips, who was accused of killing one Miss Favour Daley for ritual purposes, is a member of the church.
Oba Oyetunji Otunla, in an interview, said the place where a self-proclaimed pastor, Segun Phillip and one 23-year-old Owolabi Adeeko, killed a LASU student for rituals was nothing but a shrine.
The Chief Public Relations Officer of the C& S Unification Church, Apostle M. O. Adeyemi, had in a recent statement noted that there was no record to show that where Segun Philips was associated with the C & S Church.
Officers of the church in Irewolede/Isokan Local Government Area of Osun State where the self-acclaimed pastor committed the heinous crime had also denied knowledge of Segun Philips as a member of the Holy Order.
The Church PRO had said, “We have contacted all our officers in the zone and they said they did not know him or his church. Besides, our Youth Fellowship went as far as locating his church and came with the reports (including photographs) of not seeing any signpost or imprint of the C & S in his place of worship.
“We wonder why the Press hurriedly tagged him a “C & S Prophet”. We are not unmindful of the fact that many charlatans hide under the freedom of association as guaranteed by the Nigerian constitution to set up places of worship for different purposes. Some of them adopt white garments and mimick our mode of worship even when they are not registered or under the episcopal authority of the leadership of the C&S.”
The monarch, who visited the place after the heinous crime was committed, said, “Yes, I went there. I did not go alone. I went with my chiefs. Some journalists and policemen also accompanied us there. I didn’t see the place as a church. I considered it a shrine. It is located inside a thick forest.”
“Those in the area told me they did not know the man that owned the said ‘church’. From my findings, the self-acclaimed pastor is not an indigene of Ikoyi. The fellow who took the lady to the place, his mother and the victim are also not from Ikoyi. When I also asked how long they have been using the place, I was told it has been up to two years.”
When asked about lessons learnt from the incident as a community, the monarch said, “We all live to learn. As a community, we have learnt from this. I have called the local government chairman and spoken with him and he assured me that we would identify all the non-natives living with us in this town. We are already working on that. We will also ask them about the works they do and where they hail from.”
Apostle Adeyemi, who appealed to the media to always ascertain the true identity of fake pastors and prophets wearing white garments to deceive unsuspecting members of the public for pecuniary gains, said, “It is rather unfortunate that anybody calling himself a Christian could be that devilish and kill a fellow human being for money-making ritual. The C & S Church is a Bible-believing church that strongly believes in the sacredness of the blood of Jesus and frowns at any blood-letting rituals. ”
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