MFM, Olukoya debunk rumour of jailing church pastors for nine years
Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministry, MFM and the General Overseer, Dr. Daniel Olukoya have said that he did not frame or jail his former pastors Mr. Femi Jimoh and Caleb Oloruntele or any other person for nine years or any period.
Olukoya spoke against the reports circulating the social media which called for his arrest and prosecution over the alleged police torture, and incarceration of Mr Femi Jimoh who was one of the Pastors of the church.
It will be recalled that the convener of RevolutionNow, Mr. Omoyele Sowore through the Sahara Reporters, an online platform recently called on the Nigeria Police Force to immediately arrest, and prosecute MFM Founder, Dr. Olukoya for allegedly influencing the incarceration of pastor Femi Jimoh for nine years without trial.
In the report, Pastor Femi Jimoh who identified himself as a former MFM pastor had accused the church of being behind his incarceration for nine years without trial, over alleged armed robbery.
Speaking at a press conference on behalf of the church and the General Overseer, the Chief Legal Adviser, Davidson Adejuwon, maintained that, Mr Jimoh was only remanded and granted bail. Adding that, after they had been granted bail, the family refused to get two individuals to stand as their sureties for them to be released.
Citing some of the offences committed by Mr. Femi Jimoh, the lawyer said, “While at the ministry of MFM as a pastor, Femi, had serially got himself in one offence or the other at every branch he was posted to serve. He was being redeployed back to the headquarters for internal discipline after which he would be posted out believing he had changed.
“As such a case of planned armed attack on credible intelligence against the church which could have led to the death of any member cannot be treated and handled internally by the church.
“We have a duty to report such to the law enforcement agency saddled with the responsibilities to investigate and deal with such issues. And that was exactly what we did as a responsible church.
“All other events that transpired thereafter at the police station and during the trial were completely out of the control of the church because being a criminal matter, it became a case between the State government and the defendants.
“MFM Church and its General Overseer, Dr. Olukoya remain committed to the welfare as well as spiritual and physical wellbeing and development of its members and the humanity at large.
“MFM is a responsible church that takes the welfare and security of all its members very seriously.
“While we continue to show kindness and forgiveness to our erring staffs and rehabilitating such erring staff, MFM and its General Overseer will not use its fold to harbour or hide anyone with any criminal intent or motive capable to harm others,” he said.
One of the witnesses, Pastor Moses Oluwadare said, “Truly, he, Pastor Femi Jimoh worked with me at the MFM branch in Warri, Delta state but when I heard that he was involved in adultery in 2002, I brought him to the MFM headquarters in Lagos and was taken for three weeks deliverance.
Meanwhile, the CSO of the church, Mr. Michael Gbadamosi who was accused by Mr Femi to have been seen in a herbalist’s house said, “I have never been to Ogbomoso to see any herbalist and that is my case”.
Adejuwon further explained that, “It was absurd to imagine that a church as big as MFM would frame up two of its Pastors just because of a claim that the church’s CSO was seen in a herbalist’s house.
One of the witnesses who was said to have worked with Pastor Femi Jimoh on his robbery activity, Mr. Jimoh Omojomolo, recounted his experience saying, “As a security personnel, and member of OPC, in Iwaya, Yaba, when Femi came to me that he had a job for me, I asked which type of job and he said, robbery. That, he has cool business for us and that we will be robbing MFM church of its offerings.
Then, Femi brought Aboki to me and told me that we would work together. Then, we took the matter to the DPO Sabo, Yaba who warned us to be careful with Femi and that we should play along. He said, if we refuse to cooperate with Femi, he could take the job to another place and harm us. I was afraid.
“Then, I thought, I could help myself and my people by involving some other people and then, we went to the house of Dr. Olukoya’s father-in-law in Adeniran Ogunsanya, Surulere. It was the man who advised us to be careful and also go with camera to any meeting we will be holding with Femi to continue our fundings and meeting on the job, he wanted to hire us to do for him.
“I called Femi on who was going to finance our operations, and he mentioned, Pastor Caleb who was a pastor at MFM branch in Mowe Ibafo.
“We went alongside a policeman to see Pastor Caleb at Mowe Ibafo. When we came back to Yaba, we met Oga Saudi, a policeman who was briefed on the meeting with Pastor Caleb.
“When Caleb came to Iwaya, we then summoned a meeting of all the stakeholders and then, my team went to Olukoya’s father-in-law who gave us a camera to be able to record all the conversations at the meeting.
“There is nothing Femi will do to me. He should stop blackmailing anyone for the crime he committed. He cannot spoil my name that I have built for years”.
Another witness, Adebayo Fatai also known as Aboki buttressed Omojomlo’s claims that, Pastor Femi offered him and his friend a job, to rob MFM church and that he knows him very well.
However, efforts to contact Femi Jimoh or his lawyer proved aborted as the contacts were not connecting.
