Holding the Pentecostal Movement to Account is a must.

I have posted many times about those who use God to exploit the sentimentalist amongst us. It is time for those who truly love Christ to stand up against those who use his name for their own material comfort and consumption. It is especially time to rescue Nigerian society from the corrosive influence of a religious movement that suggest that passivity and supplication is the road to material success which is in turn the standard for spiritual redemption. We have monitized God the ultimate rent seeking agenda is now being played out by those who are middle men or arrangees fro the 'Almighty'. Say what you might about South Africans at least they stand for something other than the fulfillment of their stomach. Read below.

South Africans vow to sack Christ Embassy… As authorities humiliate Chris Oyakhilome at airport

“As South Africans, we will not rest until Chris and his cohorts are out of our country. We have fought very hard to release this country from the clutches of apartheid not to have hoaxes like them come and rape our economic and social system.”
This was the touching expression of despair by a South African and a former member of Christ Embassy who now thinks that the church is one big hoax. There had been tales of stage-managed miracles at Christ Embassy but now a number of sources close to the church confided in huhuonline.com that some of the tales may be true after all. They narrated a number of incidents that has compelled them to doubt the authenticity of the Christ Embassy Church in South Africa .
Our source gave an instance of a lady that had been sitting on a wheel chair in the healing line, she had been sitting there for hours while waiting for the man of God to come and minister to her. When nature called, she forgot she was supposed to act paralyzed. And there she was standing and running to the toilet. Minutes after that, she received serious tongue-lashing from the Healing School pastors for the great embarrassment she caused. No one really understood this because she was not allowed to return to the wheel chair as people had seen her dash off to the toilet. Her empty wheel chair was wheeled out of the room.

Chris Oyakhilome
Another source recalled that a similar incident had transpired in the Healing School when another supposedly bed-ridden faithful was pushed to the toilet by a church member who had volunteered to help at the Healing School . On getting there with the helper, she stood by herself and went in. The helper screamed, rejoicing that a miracle had already taken place. She was shocked to see this patient also receiving serious reprimand for standing without aid.
Huhuonline.com also gathered that an old woman who ministers next to Pastor Chris , called Deaconess Pat, many refer to as mommy in South Africa, who lays hands on women on Chris’ behalf and instruction was said to have warned some South Africans not to bring their children nor give their money to the money making scheme. Her words were, “this is not a church”. She also made mention of the fact that her own children are in full time church ministry but none are in Christ Embassy. She was quoted as saying that she is only at Christ Embassy because it is a job for her.
There is an interesting sub-unit in the Christ Embassy Church called the ‘Haven’. It largely consists of select members that fund Chris Oyakhilome’s minisry in South Africa and beyond.
South Africans that belong to this group have suffered tremendously through the insane donations demanded from them by Christ Embassy . Many have had to take children out of schools to be able to keep up with the Christ Embassy demands .
While South Africans are committing their hard-earned money to the Christ Embassy projects, their pastors are indulging in an unimaginable life of luxury.
Pastor Ken Oyakhilome drives a Lamborghini Murcielago, Austin Martin DB9, Porsche Cayenne, amongst his five expensive vehicles. All of this luxury life in Houston , Texas is funded by what is called the “American Initiative” .
Another fake, is one Olatunde Oyediran who claims that he lives for Chris Oyakhilome’s vision and ministry and that is where all his money goes, yet he drives a Toyota RunEx.
Meanwhile, Immorality is not a scarce commodity in Christ Embassy, South Africa . Tomisin Fashina, a Senior Pastor in the Sandton church, South Africa , is said to have children from different women in his congregation. Fashina is said to have taught his congregation that it was more evil to bring a fatherless child to the world than to abort. This has raised the suspicion that he may be impregnating women in his church and asking them to abort.
His wife, Tolu Fashina, on the other hand is alleged to have embezzled the Healing School funds when she and one Taiwo Adenubi, a senior pastor in Pretoria , just outside Johannesburg had been given a construction contract by Dr. Diolla who is the head of the Healing school.
They were exposed by a worker who had taken his share of the loot, when they tried to blame it on him. Apparently, this guy, a Nigerian national confessed his own sins but said that he had learnt from the best, being Tolu and Taiwo.
In 2007, the Christ Embassy Randburg branch got a member called Funi Silinda, a business woman. She gave no less than R100,000, a month. On months like the American Initiative, she is recorded to have given approximately R600,000. She bought a lot of first class tickets for most of the Christ Embassy, Randburg leadership to attend international conferences in Nigeria . She also paid for many of them to be in good hotels .
For partnership like the Healing School , she gave about R30,000 a month . She built a computer centre in Randburg, furnished it with state-of-the-art computers and accessories. Funi paid for the Christ Embassy TBN contract. She was led to believe that it cost R100,000 a month .Yet she faithfully paid for a whole year.
It came as a shock to many when Funi announced that she was leaving Christ Embassy because she had run out of money. She said that all the donation she made in Christ Embassy were financed by business projects she received prior to coming to Christ Embassy.
It became obvious that Funi was tired of being used which is something she said in the end. The final straw was when she was told that she has been personally invited by Chris Oyakhilome to attend his birthday party on the 7th of December, 2007.
Tunde Oyediran started working on her, telling her of how she would need to compete with others at profligacy when she gets to the party as they habitually auction Pastor Chris’ suites for anything up to R1million .
That day, she realized that Christ Embassy was nothing but a 419 scam. It was then speculated that she cancelled the flight and went back to her home.
Then another fake, Dolapo Layode, who is often postured by the church as the highest giver and donor in the church came to South Africa in 2007 to share a very far-fetched testimony.
Dolapo told the meeting that two Angels came to her room asking to be dispatched. And she had told the angels to get her a license to lift oil in Nigeria . In two weeks time, she had not only gotten this license, but also a scholarship to London where she studies about the business she was about to embark on.
In less than a year, Dolapo was telling people that she has trucks with her names running around Nigeria transporting oil . She never mentioned planning to be in the transportation business as well.
That was when some people realized that Dolapo and her kind , in Christ Embassy were a grand part of the whole extortionary scam. No one can out-give them and it is meant to be that way. Dolapo shocked people even more when she said that when she prays for money, she finds it everywhere in the house, in her wardrobe and within clothes.
However, it appears, this grace for money or ability to mint money as it has been termed, only works for the Nigerian members of “the Haven” group.
South Africans are loved because they work and earn a lot of money and have easy access to credit according to one Pastor Efeoma, a former ‘Haven’ President.
In all these, many South Africans have had to use desperate measures to finance the deep pockets of Christ Embassy hoping to avoid being shunned.
They use credit cards, overdrafts, personal loans, second bonds, missed car and house payments to meet the church’s demands. As a result many are blacklisted by the credit bureau, their cars are repossessed while they are evicted or watch helplessly as their houses are auctioned.
In the ‘Haven’ group the only people who seem to have testimonies of being millionaires are Nigerians while South Africans face liquidation and other financial crisis.
It is no longer secret that the South African authorities are not leaving any stone unturned in its investigation to get to the root of the many outcries against the activities of Christ Embassy in South Africa . This was demonstrated about a month ago when Pastor Chris Oyakhilome came for the Healing School . He was literally frisked and not a single stroke of nicety was spent on him. It was real business and objectivity. His Private Jet was thoroughly searched at the airport. He was asked to fill in forms standing on the counter as the airport officials apparently refused him to use the VIP lounge to do all that.
Chris was said to have been very angry at Ose, wife of Ken Oyakhilome, who has been running Christ Embassy aground by her immoral and uninspiring conducts. Chris was also said to have threatened to stop coming to South Africa as he blamed Ose for poorly managing matters in South Africa . Chris who came to South Africa from Texas was said to have gotten the same treatment there.
South Africans strongly feel that Chris made the worse mistake by coming to South Africa in the first place. The investigators handling the matter already have the support of many countries, including Nigeria . They have met with some Nigerian officials who are passionate with fighting crime. A meeting of all religious groups in South Africa was convened penultimate Friday in Kwa-Zulu Natal to discus the notorious activities of Christ Embassy in South Africa .
And as the South African authorities step up investigations, into the activities of Christ Embassy, the people are aggressively mobilizing to stamp out Christ embassy from their country for good.
Memo from a meeting of all religous group, held in Kwa- Zulu Natal last friday, to dicuss Christ Embassy atrocities in SA.

From the pages of the Sowetan to Gods ears

Why breakaway party has appeal

22 October 2008
Zoleka Ndayi
The ANC being dominated by leftists will not sit well with foreign investors and the international community at large

The “anger”, “dented egos” and “selfish political ambitions” of the “disgruntled” versus the “arrogance” and “limited intellectual capacities” of the new ANC leadership and the PAC split from the ANC could not be used as the only points of reference in testing the viability of a breakaway party in the current scenario.
The policy and principle informing the split as well as the era during which the breakaway occurs are equally if not more important than the widely publicised personality elements.
Domestically, white conservative nationalism that informed the National Party and the resultant intensification of discrimination, segregation and repression led to the split of the ANC. The split was a response to white conservatism or dominance.
The radical elements within the ANC were to respond by espousing black conservative nationalism in the form of the PAC on the one hand, while the ANC, on the other hand, took a soft approach and embraced multiculturalism, hence the Freedom Charter with emphasis on equality.
But the current breakaway from the ANC is informed not by policy but principle. It is wildly held that the ANC under former president Thabo Mbeki excluded those who had alternative views. The centralisation of power meant the marginalisation of the lower party structures.
In a bid to change the status quo the Polokwane conference saw the excluded and marginalised becoming the centre of power.
But the new centre now tries to maintain the status quo by excluding and marginalising the former centre through “purging” them from the party and government structures.
In response, the former centre breaks away from the mainstream party by openly calling for the observation and restoration of the principles of the Freedom Charter, some of which the former centre itself did not respect during its tenure.
In tackling this challenge, the new leadership hides behind the “ANC culture”, the “ANC traditions” of internal debate, forgetting that political stability is a question of national interest and not necessarily party interest.
This stance was clearly demonstrated by ANC president Jacob Zuma on national TV when he objected to Mbeki’s challenge to a public debate about the reasons for his sacking from the highest job in the country.
This objection has the potential to strengthen the support of the breakaway party not only from within the ANC but among the citizens at large.
From an international perspective, the era of globalisation means that any political and economic agenda that seeks to attract the attention of the international community should embrace liberal principles. It seems then the breakaway party could be more appealing than the ANC.
The current leadership of the party includes such leftists as the South African Communist Party’s Blade Nzimande.
Though Zuma constantly assures the business and international community that there will be no policy changes under his government, it remains to be seen how the left will lead or live with neo-liberal ideologies.
This doubt is further supported by the feeling that the party is “dominated” by the SACP. On the other hand, the pioneers of the breakaway group are members of the middle class that espouses neo-liberalism, the principles of which dwell well with foreign investors and the international community at large.
Three main actors in the transition period, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Allan Boesak and Mosiuoa Lekota, played an influential role in attaining a democratic South Africa.
In the eyes of the international community and South African citizens this could add a score on the credibility of this trio’s venture outside the ANC.
This means those who hold on to the ANC through sentimental attachments, despite their lack of trust on the capabilities of the new ANC leadership, and those who are skeptical about its arrogance, might soon follow the three aforementioned leaders.
Mbhazima Shilowa on his own is an asset to this “outside-the-ANC” venture. Besides his struggle credentials and having been part of the mass democratic movement, he has a wider network in business domestically and internationally. He has a good track record of delivery during his tenure as Gauteng premier.
In addition to being appealing to the middle class, all these factors are in line with the interests of foreign investors, and add weight to the credibility of the breakaway party.
lThe writer is a lecturer in the department of international relations at Wits.

The House Thabo built

Something to make you think about how truly we never have proper standards to judge good leaders. Our love for populists in Africa and our addiction to instant gratification makes us very vulnerable to demagogues. Black Diamonds well Mbeki shaped the market and nurtured them with his policies here is their success so far. The desire for all or nothing makes Good the enemy of better and Better hate best. To Thabo Mbeki a true son of Africa and a true hero of every true African thinker.

Black diamonds sparkle on
Article By: Marcia Klein
Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:36
SA's new middle class is still growing despite economic slowdown, writes Marcia Klein.

For the first time, the spending power of the three-million people that make up South Africa's black middle class has matched the spending power of the country's white population.
The latest Black Diamonds research by UCT Unilever Institute of Strategic Marketing and TNS Research Surveys shows that the black middle class has grown by 15 percent to three-million people over the past year, while their annual spending power has mushroomed nearly 40 percent to a massive R250-billion.
Black Diamonds are still growing in number, despite the economic woes that surround them.
Resilient to rates

A surprising finding of the research is that the black middle class has remained fairly resilient to the interest rate and inflation hikes that have put pressure on many South Africans.

Professor John Simpson, director of the UCT Unilever Institute, said that despite predictions of the black middle class reeling under debt pressure, the opposite is true.
"The most astounding evidence of their financial resilience can be seen in a 39 percent increase in spending power — from R180-billion in 2007 to R250-billion this year."
Rudo Maponga, Black Diamond research manager at TNS Research Surveys, said that, despite perceptions, the black middle class is not highly indebted. Almost half of them have a debt to income ratio of less than 50 percent.
Maponga said if economic conditions had been more favourable Black Diamonds numbers would have seen greater growth. The sector grew 15 percent in the year, but by 30 percent the year before.
She said growth had also slowed because the base was getting bigger, "which means growth will inevitably slow in percentage terms. What's also significant is that, despite the downturn, their spending power continues to grow, which suggests that this segment is also becoming wealthier."
Simpson said interest rate and inflation hikes had affected Black Diamonds, as they had everyone, but the effect had been patchy.
"But one thing is clear: they are less indebted than people thought they were."
Black Diamonds are managing their finances better and are far more financially astute than they once were, Simpson said.
The fact that the number of people has not increased as much as their spending power has suggests that people established in the middle class are getting better jobs, and that companies are attracting people of colour.
The study showed appreciation within the sector of the difference between good debt (like a home and investments) and bad debt (buying chocolates with a credit card), Simpson said.
Less than 10 percent of Black Diamonds have had anything repossessed.
"Life stages"

Paul Egan, managing consultant to UCT/Unilever, said the Black Diamond group is not homogenous, and includes people at different "life stages" — those with children who have been working for longer and are fairly established, and those who are still playing catch up, using income and, perhaps credit, to acquire assets.

He said the 2007 study had shown a huge migration from townships to suburbs, averaging about 1200 families, or 60 000 people, a month.
This slowed in 2008. This could be partly because of the increasing cost of housing and the high cost of borrowing, but could also be due to the densification of townships and investment within them, such as the construction of shopping malls.
Egan noted that there is a high percentage of black middle-class families with two earners, and a significant percentage with more than that.
The change to democracy and enabling legislation have enabled black women to move swiftly into the middle class.
Black Diamond women

Black Diamond women represent more than 40 percent of the R120-billion in female consumer spending.

"Many women respondents revealed that their earning power had a significant impact on decision-making when it comes to making purchases — not only for grocery shopping, but with regard to larger purchases such as household appliances, investments and cars," Simpson said.
Maponga said almost half of the women interviewed said they earned more than 50 percent of the household income and more than 80 percent said they were the main household decision-maker.
She said women's aspirations are higher than their mothers and grandmothers, and women are far more ambitious since 1994.
Sunday Times

Now Mzansi, It is time.

Talk of a split in the broad church that is the ANC is long overdue. This is not a Zuma versus Mbeki discuss but a allowing the two forces that underpin the future direction of South Africa's black majority to emerge. One force I identify with Mbeki and my younger brother Siphiwe Mpye is quite an open Africanisation that seeks dignity and a common humanity grounded in intellectual curiosity. They see South Africa as one of the forces for an African Renaissance as well as challenging western hegemony. They identify that there is a nuanced evolution required for change and they are willing to adapt their positions so long as the vision is not lost. They do not necessarily seek popular acclamation and do not suffer fools gladly. They recognise that not everyone will move at the same speed. On the other hand there is the Jacob Zuma exemplified and reflected in my brother Pious Kasolo who express an African stereotype of populist and traditional expression of power in which authority is by position not ideas and have an Mzansi exceptionalism couched in superior infrastructure and fear of mass migration or swamping. They project an activism of the lowest common denominator seeing the Anti-apartheid struggle as an insular battle won by the good over the bad. Their lessons from that is that Mzansi is got theirs and the rest of Africa well they should get on their bikes. They fight a class war that suggest that the poor are entitled to a good life rather than they should be given the opportunity to work for a good living.

For the sake of Mzansi and those who love it the ANC must split there has to be the competitive and co-operative dynamic equilibrium that is the basis of evolution. It is time for new possibilities and this is not only true in Mzansi but the same is true of the Power Dinosaur that is the PDP in Nigeria. It seems now the purpose of this massive parties is just the accumulation of power rather than the generation of a framework of ideas and ideals. Lets have a new dawn in Africa lets have truly competitive parties in fact we need a space where people with ideas can run as independents. We need to open this stuff up especially the ANC.

Open posting

Let me quickly wax lyrical on a few things:

Mzansi crime wave against Nigerians continue with little or no check. Any Nigerian on the way to South Africa should be advised not to carry cash and  hire your own car from the airport. Take security measures to secure you valuables and  ensure no one is following you. The 'bad name ' Nigerians have has made them the perfect target for ill treatment and crime. Never mind that  the nearly 100 hundred cases of armed robbery on Nigerians in the last year  has not set off alarm bells. With a lacklustre government it not a surprise that there is no travel warning issued to Nigerian citizens on the way to the Rainbow nation.

Gidi Crime is  also on the rise with armed robbery targeting the entertainment spots  frequented by the Lagos elite. Shame that the federal government refuses the request for states to have their own police. Their crime prevention effort is more likely to work. Look out for a post on community policing  on these pages in May. However the current Lagos State government is got a very clear cut vision for the future of the city and state. The outlines are already showing in its beautification of public spaces as well as its emerging infrastructure development. I was in Law School with the Governor even though we never were friends. I feel so proud that someone from my generation is laying down foundation for a great future in the public sector. He would certainly make a better President than the current incumbent. Fashola 2011 ! you hear it here first.

The much touted 'bitter' comment from Senator Obama in describing rural Pennsylvania  is my first disagreement with him and it is quite a relief. It is an healthy sign that I am not totally in the tank for him. There is an unfortunate tendency amongst the progressive yes, Elites to view the problems of the disdavantaged and downtrodden as victimisation of something outside their own character and choices. It seems to imply that their response to adverse condition is inevitable and without alternative. It is a disempowering position and ignores the fact that we are co creator of any reality we live. Barack should know better . I sincerely hope that his analysis was just to give a reason not an excuse . It is difficult to tell however, he still stands heads and shoulders above his opponents. He will lose the battle for Penn but I feel  sure he will win the nomination barring a collapse of sorts.

Nigerian economy to grow by 9% this year according to the IMF .  This is an Obasanjo gift that continues to keep giving since it is not exclusively Oil prices but also non-oil sector. If you have not got into the NSE i.e. Nigerian Stock Exchange you are missing a great round of profit taking especially in the Insurance market. Placed a little punt on a private placement in  December and my return after IPO is 100% increase in share value now wished I had bought more. There is no more vilified human being in the Nigerian media and if we are to believe amongst the people than OBJ. history will judge.

What happened to President Kikwette of Tanzania ? A man who seemed ready to become an example of a 21st century African leader a few years ago now totally in the tank for the West like his predecessor. What was all that brown nosing of the George W Bush on his cringe inducing African  trip? Sometimes I wish that President Mugabe was a little wiser but nevertheless no less confrontational. What is this incompetence of African Politicians at succession planning? Should run a training course or retreat through the AU. Watch NEPAD gradually fold up as part of the decline of influence of President Mbeki. 

Now who is your Daddy? My prediction on the dollar at the beginning of the year is on track to becoming a reality. See how many nations and people are dumping the dollar.  I wonder whether the UK citizenry are now sure of their hysterical refusal to join the Euro. The same for my people in Sweden who failed to see  what was on the horizon. Worse is still to come. It is sheer pain for me as the value has dropped from all my dollar investment.

The Okada saga continues as a group of South African friends come into town for the African Movie Awards in Bayelsa State. Worried a little about kidnapping and all that jazz but know that the organisers are truly grounded in the politics of the Delta. All the best to them. We need more stand up people showcasing African stories. 

Should not the Nigerian singing sensation Asha be the greatest new artiste on a greater African if not Global stage.  She rocks.

It is now official Nigeria is the new black . Watch CNN programming on the country and see how much Al Jazeera has become a clone of the Mainstream Western Media (MWM). 

Ire O!

The Coming of a Zuma Presidency?

It looks like the ANC is going to vote in Jacob Zuma as its President. It is a predictable triumph of populism over intellectual and reflective choices. It might seem to many in the West and majority of Mzansi an improvement on the incumbent Thabo Mbeki but I suspect it is a backward step. The Zeitgeist in South Africa amongst the majority black population and co-opted by the cynical media elite, is the worship of the activist. I will not dwell too much on the activocracy as I call them (read earlier posting on Mzansi) but suffice it to say that it is the foundation and catalyst for what appears to be a very poor choice. It also seems that it is part of the enduring view amongst many other ethnic groups in Mzansi that there is something called the 'Xhosa Nostra'. That is most of their black elite are Xhosa hence for the some time to give the Zulu the chance to rule. There are however too many challenges ahead for this beautiful country to fall into the trap of the laziness of Conventional wisdom. Mr Zuma might be the most personable and approachable salt of the earth but nothing he has done or said suggest that he is intellectually, emotionally or practically capable of leading the most successful African Economy. I do not think Mzansi can afford to make a petulant choice for its sake and for the possibility of an Africa that will be competitive in this new century. Some of the challenges that Zuma can worsen are:

1. The landless millions who have the potential to ride the wave of populism towards a hasty 'Zimbabwean' style land grab.

2. The effect of the increasing population and Urbanisation on the infrastructure already showing in the worsening power failure and rationing.

3. Increasing Xenophobia towards immigrants and intolerance of the other, even ethnic discrimination especially towards the much envied Xhosa

4. The abuse of women especially the rape which is already at a phenomenal level.

5. Breaking the stranglehold on the economy by a few conglomerates mostly white owned in a sustainable and productive manner.

6. Moving beyond the simplistic rhetoric of so called 'Black diamonds' towards a truly integrated market place that opens up for upward mobility rather than a poorly engineered Government quota system.

All these things need a sophisticated and nuanced decision as well as policy line that educates the people, sets standards and engages them towards possibilities rather than fears.

There are too many South Africans who view Mbeki with suspicion and too many in the West that will never forgive him for his position on Zimbabwe. I hope for their sake this choice proves right because if it is not they will look back on President Mbeki with Nostalgia but by that time the damage would be done.. I am sure in my instincts that this is what will happen but only time will be the judge.