The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has dismissed reports claiming that he carried a protest placard against former President Goodluck Jonathan, accusing journalists of misrepresenting his actions and taking his statements out of context.
Adeboye made the clarification on Sunday during the church’s November Thanksgiving service in Lagos, where he expressed displeasure over what he described as misleading media reports about his past activities and comments on Nigeria’s political and security situation.
The cleric explained that the incident involving the placard took place in February 2020, during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, and not in 2015 when Jonathan was still in office.
According to him, the prayer walk was organised by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to draw attention to the growing insecurity, killings and other security challenges across the country.
Adeboye recalled that some reports had accused him of carrying a placard against Jonathan, creating the impression that he participated in a political protest against the former president.
He described the report as misleading, stressing that Jonathan had already left office in May 2015, almost five years before the incident.
“Recently, just one mischievous somebody wrote in the papers, or said somehow, ‘Pastor Adeboye is a very wicked man. After all, we know that not too long ago, he carried a placard against President Goodluck Jonathan,’” he said.
The RCCG leader explained that he led members of the church on a prayer walk in Lagos on February 2, 2020, following a three-day fasting and prayer programme declared by CAN to seek God’s intervention over insecurity and terrorism in Nigeria.
The procession reportedly started from the RCCG national headquarters in Ebute Meta, proceeded towards Atan Cemetery in Yaba and later returned to the church.
Photographs from the exercise showed Adeboye holding a placard with the inscription, “All Souls Are Precious to God.”
He maintained that the exercise was strictly a religious activity organised as part of a nationwide prayer walk directed by CAN, which encouraged churches across the country to participate.
Adeboye criticised journalists for failing to properly investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident before publishing their reports.
He recalled his days at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in the 1960s, where he said he took courses outside his faculty, including an introductory journalism course.
According to him, the lessons taught him that journalists must investigate stories thoroughly rather than rely on appearances or assumptions.
“Things don’t appear as they may seem. Investigate, if you have a story, before you take it to the press, you investigate it,” he said.
The cleric also accused some media organisations of misrepresenting his recent comments on Nigeria’s security challenges and United States President Donald Trump’s threat of possible military action against the country.
He explained that he spoke for approximately 30 minutes during an engagement with some influential Americans but alleged that a journalist selected less than five minutes of his remarks and presented them as his complete position.
Adeboye said his comments included a defence of the Federal Government’s response to the abduction of some children in Orile.
He disclosed that he expressed confidence that the abducted children would be rescued alive because he had prayed and received assurances from God that none of them would die.
He also explained that his remarks comparing President Bola Tinubu and Donald Trump were intended to highlight the responsibilities of commanders-in-chief.
According to him, both presidents had given instructions to their security officials to address security threats, and Tinubu should not be blamed simply because he was not personally involved in the rescue operation.
“I said, our president has told his officers, go and get these children out. I said, once Trump finished giving his order, he went to bed. I said, don’t blame my president,” Adeboye stated.
He added that Tinubu, like Trump, should be allowed to rest after giving the necessary instructions to security commanders, stressing that issuing directives was part of the responsibilities of a commander-in-chief.
However, the pastor clarified that he did not support military action against Nigeria, despite appreciating Trump’s willingness to assist the country in tackling insecurity.
He said he appealed to the American president not to bomb Nigeria but instead help the country identify and deal with individuals and groups financing terrorism.
Adeboye expressed disappointment that media reports allegedly concentrated on his defence of Tinubu while ignoring his appeal for additional American assistance and his opposition to military attacks on Nigeria.
He insisted that he had called on the United States to support Nigeria by targeting those sponsoring terrorism rather than resorting to bombing.
“When I said, President of America, thank you, you have helped us, but you have not done enough. We still need help. But don’t bomb us anymore. I said that, that’s not news,” he said.
He added that his appeal for assistance against terrorism financiers was also left out of some reports, giving the public what he considered an incomplete picture of his position.
The RCCG general overseer maintained that journalists should always provide the full context of public statements and investigate events properly before publishing reports.
He concluded by expressing disappointment over what he described as selective reporting, saying, “God have mercy on journalists.”
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