TB Joshua Should’ve Been Prosecuted For Church Collapse – Says Soyinka
Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, said the founder of the Synagogue, Church of All Nations, Temitope Joshua better known as TB Joshua, ought to have been prosecuted for the collapse of his church hostel.
Soyinka said TB Joshua ought to have been by the Lagos State Government when on September 12, 2014, a hostel collapsed in the SCOAN’s premises in Lagos killing at least 116 people, 84 of them South Africans.
The Nobel Laureate said this in Abuja on Saturday at the book reading and signing of two of his books titled, ‘Trumpism in Academe’ and ‘Chronicles of the Happiest People on Earth’ organized by Rovenheights Bookstore and Orisun Gallery.
The playwright said unfortunately, TB Joshua had the audacity to say that the church was attacked by a strange aircraft.
The Nobel laureate said Nigeria had become such a deeply religious society to the extent that actions that should be punished are usually regarded as an act of God.
He also noted that some years ago, an aeroplane conveying pilgrims to Mecca crashed in Nigeria but instead of the authorities to take action, it was ruled as an act of Allah and no one was brought to book.
Soyinka added, “There are others for whom the calling is just a cover-up because we have an abnormal respect for the priesthood in this country. It doesn’t matter which one- Muslim, Christian, Orisa worshipper, Buddhists, whatever it is.
“Somehow, religion has almost national character and so it doesn’t matter who it is or what he does. He can get away with a lot. Look at TB Joshua for instance whose chapel of whatever it is in Lagos, collapsed on the congregation. Not just Nigerians, close to 200 or 300. They came from South Africa and so on and so forth.
A coroner, Oyetade Komolafe, had in July 2015 ruled that the church was culpable because of criminal negligence resulting in the death of the victims.
Komolafe said Joshua’s church had not obtained proper approval before putting up the structure.
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