See how the redeem Christian church was attacked, burnt by suspected extremists

By Eric Patrick 



Last Monday was a black day for members of a parish
 of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, in 
Abuja, was invaded and set ablaze by people believed to
 be religious extremists.

The incident took place around 5am at the Root of David 
Area Headquarters in Apiawe village, DeiDei, via Kubwa, one 
of the satellite towns of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The hoodlums were said to have made away with musical
instruments and other valuables worth millions of naira
belonging to the church before they set it on fire.

According to a source, he told the ERICGOSSIP that the attackers were many but their actual number could not be ascertained. “The people came in the morning and stole everything in the church and burnt it down. The worshipers were not in the church when the incident happened as it was very early in the morning,” one of the eyewitnesses, Danjuma Abdullahi, said.

Narrating the story, the Pastor-in-charge of the parish, 
Pastor Oladele Stephen, said he received a distress call 
from one of his members, informing him that some fanatics had burnt down the church.

“They made away with our generating set, musical instruments, chairs and microphones and set the building
 on fire,” he said.

The pastor noted that the church auditorium was also, some
weeks ago, attacked by some suspected religious
fundamentalists, who broke into the church through the ceiling and made away with six ceiling fans, speakers and
microphones.

He added that the matter was reported to the police, saying,
however, that nothing was done. “We reported the matter to
the police, but no arrest was made,” Stephen said.

The cleric expressed dismay at the unchecked growing
religious intolerance even in the Federal Capital Territory,
wondering why security operatives appeared to be 
displaying open sympathy for what he described as ungodly and illegal acts.

Oladele explained that, on several occasions, some of the
extremists, who own shanties near the church, had provoked
the parishioners by burning grass near the place of worship,
thus spewing heavy smoke into the auditorium during worship.

“These boys sell and smoke hemp on daily basis near the
church,” he added.

While describing the attack as an affront to the Christian
community, the pastor stated that the matter had been
reported to the provincial headquarters of the church and 
the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

The cleric said; “We reported to the Divisional Police Officer
(DPO) on Monday around 10am but they have not made any
arrest. Instead, they were asking us whether we suspect
anyone. The DPO told us that we should just go and assured
us that God will help us to recover all the property.”

The DPO in charge of Dei-Dei Police Station was not available
for comments.

Conducting an on-the-spot assessment at the parish, 
National President, Youth Wing of CAN (YOWICAN),
 Daniel Kadzai, said it was unfortunate that the issue of 
attack on Christians and their churches had not been taken seriously in the country.

“I want to express my disappointment in this government for
gross dereliction of duty. The primary role of government is to
provide security to its citizens irrespective of religion or
ethnicity,but it seems the government has failed in this duty,”
he said.

Also speaking on the incident, the Christian Association 
of Nigeria (CAN) condemned the attack on the Redeemed Church parish, describing it as barbaric.

The Chairman, FCT Chapter of CAN, Rev. Jonah Samson, 
also called on the Federal Government to take action on
 what had happened by arresting the culprits and bring 
them to book, saying this will go a long way to avoid further 
tension between the two major religions in the country.

Samson said; “I see this as provocation and it is so painful.

You don’t need an angel to tell you that a lot of destruction
 has been done here. “We are hoping that the law will take 
its course in a situation where you find people who do not have respect for the law. To be very frank, issues like this must be tamed and people who have done this should be arrested and made to face the full wrath of the law. “We expect that government will take action and ensure that 
they fish out those who are responsible for this act and then we will be satisfied.”