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Everything to Know About The TB Joshua Scandal
BBC recently revealed an expose regarding the late Nigerian pastor, Prophet TB Joshua, here is everything to know about the scandal.
The British Broadcasting Corporation popularly known as BBC recently revealed an expose regarding the late Nigerian pastor, Prophet TB Joshua. According to the expose which was titled “Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua” and uploaded on Youtube, the Nigerian pastor was involved in a series of sexual assualts, widespread abuse and torture, abortions , fake miracle healing and the cult like operation of the syan agogue. This expose has generated a lot of buzz online, with many people questioning the aunthencity of the expose as the man in question is no longer alive and unable to defend himself.
Who is TB Joshua?
Temitope Balogun Joshua, popularly known as TB Joshua was a nigerian pastor, televangelist and the founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN). He is popularly known across the world, for his miracle healing power and also his philantrophy. Prior to his death, and the recent expose by BBC, TB Joshua has always been controversial figure, with numerous allegations regarding his operation of the Synagogue.
According to Wikipedia, TB Joshua founded the Synagogue Church of All Nations in 1987. The church started with eight members, but grew its population over time, attracting over 50,000 people to its weekly Sunday services. With the increase in population,a massive structure was set up with rich architectural outlook which made the church “the most visited destination by religious tourists in West Africa” for both Nigerians and foreigners.The church was known to air its weekly services through live broadcast on Emmanuel TV as well as its social media platforms.
Over the course of his fufiling pastoral career, TB Joshua was said to be one of the richest pastors in Nigeria, estimated to be worth over 100 Million dollars. Notable platform like forbes reported that TB Joshua was able to accumulate the said fortune through fundraising, pilgrims, sales of videos, and appearances at stadiums full of followers. He passed away on the fifth of june 2021, reportedly killed by an heart attack.
Criticisms and controversies before his death
As earlier stated TB Joshua was a controversial figure even while he was alive, as many pentecostal pastors did not agree to his method of running the synagouge in a cult like manner. Many prominenent pastors in and outside Nigeria often condemned his methods of worship. He was also rejectted by the Christain associaition of Nigeria denouncing him as an “impostor” and occult figure posing as an evangelical.
TB Joshua was also in the face of criticism for his purported miracles, delivarances and acclaimed prophecies. He prophesized that Hillary Clinton would win the 2016 US election, which was however won By Donald Trump. Prior to that he had made headlines during the 2014 Ebola Pandemic, after claiming his annointing water can cure the pandemic. According to reports, the accliamed prophet sold 4,000 bottles of the water and $50,000 to the Ebola-stricken nation of Sierra Leone.
In the same year, a guesthouse located within the premises of the Synagogue Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) had collapsed to the ground, killing a total number of 115 people, 85 of which were south Africans. This unfortunate incident generated a lot of buzz on the media and lot of criticism for TB Joshua, who many suspected had done something sinister leading to the collapse of the building.
Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua
On the 7th January,2024 the social media was visited with an over-150-minutes long video, sectioned into three episodes and published on YouTube by the British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC).The video titled, “Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua”, contained testimonies of several witnesses levelling multiple agaping accusations against the late prophet. The video since it was posted has caused a huge stir on the media, as several stories were raised by people to substantiate the credibity of the story.
The testimonies were from his past church workers,members and even his close disciples each telling their experiences of abuse and manipulation by the pastor whom the called “Father” when he was still alive. Owith ne of the testifiers described the prophet’s relationship with his dissciples as one that a slave would have with her master,the King where they were all used and were made to live in servitude till the prophet’s death.
The foreigners,having larger percentage among those who gave the testimonies alleged they stayed between 10 and 14 years in the Synagogue as a result of the prophet’s manipulation where they served him tirelessly and all they had. Also,this video revealed shocking information about the building collapse that happened in the church at Ikotun,Lagos on September 14,2024 where over a hundred lives were lost as a result.
The video has sparked a lot of reactions from netizens debating the authenticity of his powers. While the allegations are being debated online on the verity of the documentary,in a recent interview with the BBC,the church denied the allegations for lack of substatiating evidence.