The crisis rocking the Assemblies of God Church has
taken another dimension as the group loyal to Rev Chidi Okoroafor accused the
District Superintendent of the church in Abuja, Rev Nicholas Anyanwu, of
forging a Bachelor of Arts degree to get the plum position.
Anyanwu is from the camp of embattled Rev (Prof)
Paul Emeka, who alongside Okoroafor, are laying claims to the position of the
General Superintendent (GS) of Assemblies of God Church, Nigeria.
Last weekend, Anyanwu, while briefing of
journalists in Abuja, displayed a judgement by Justice Othman Musa of High
Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which favoured him as the
authentic District Superintendent of Assemblies of God Church, Abuja.
The judgment was delivered on July 5, 2018, in a
suit filed by Anyanwu against the Okoroafor faction of the church.
But in their reaction, some members of the church,
who spoke to journalists at the Wuse branch revealed that Anyanwu fraudulently
deceived the church to get elected as the District Superintendent, Abuja.
According to Rev Hyacinth Ngene, who claimed to be
the Abuja District Superintendent, Anyanwu's did not possess the basic
requirement to stand for election as District Superintendent (DS), adding that
the embattled DS "wrongfully and criminally misinterpreted the judgment of
the court.”
Ngene said: "In the first instant, Anyanwu is
not the DS of Assemblies of God Church, Abuja district, and as well, not a
member of the church.
"The story remains that Assemblies of God
Church, Abuja district, held an election wherein Anyanwu (DS); Rev. Ngene
Hyacinth (Assistant District Superintendent); Rev. Tony Ese (District Sec);
Rev. Godwin Agaga (District Treasurer); Rev. Emma Ugwu (Member); Rev. Asuata
(Member) and Rev. Paul Adoga (Member) took part.
"Shortly after the election, there was a
petition to the General Council led by Rev. Chidi Okoroafor against Anyanwu,
alleging that Anyanwu deceived the church by claiming that he is a graduate
with degree which he is not, and fraudulently stood in for an election and
emerged as District Superintendent."
Ngene stated that upon receipt of the petition, the
general council sent the petition to
Anyanwu to respond but he declined, following which the general council
set up a panel to thoroughly investigate the matter.
"The panel invited Anyanwu in their meeting to
come and clarify himself, but Anyanwu refused to answer the panel.
"Having failed to answer the panel, the
general council suspended him and when the panel submitted its report and was
established that Anyanwu deceived the church and disobeyed the constitution of
the church, he was dismissed as the District Superintendent and ex communicated
as a member of the church in line with the constitution of Assemblies of God
Church," Ngene said.
According to Ngene, Anyanwu never challenged his
dismissal as the District Superintendent rather, he challenged his suspension
in court, stating that he was not given fair hearing.
The faction claimed that the judgment delivered on July
5, 2018, only nullified the ‘suspension’ alleged or complained by Anyanwu but did
not nullify his dismissal as DS and expulsion as a member of the church.
"The judgment did not also say he is still the
Abuja District Superintendent of Assemblies of God, Nigeria," Ngene
posited.
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