Nigerian Prophet, T.B. Joshua, has splashed N6m
($30,000) on over a hundred Nigerian deportees
who arrived from Libya on the evening of
Thursday 16th June, 2016.
According to media reports, 162 Nigerians were
deported from the North African nation with the
aid of the International Organisation for
Migration (IOM) in collaboration with the Swiss
government and the Nigerian Embassy in Libya.
However, rather than return home, 107 decided
to 'seek refuge' at The Synagogue, Church Of All
Nations (SCOAN), the popular Lagos-based church
of T.B. Joshua.
According to a post on Joshua's official Facebook
Page, after feeding the dishevelled and frail-
looking Nigerians who arrived at the church late
in the night, the sum of N50,000 was given to
each of them alongside a bag of rice.
"Let me be honest with you, if not for this gift
from T.B. Joshua, I had the plan of joining the
militants in the Niger Delta," admitted Friday, a
returnee from Delta State, who fell to his knees
in gratitude after receiving the gift.
The deportees explained to this reporter that
most of them had been surviving by doing menial
jobs in the war-torn nation before being arrested
and imprisoned.
"We came back with nothing but the clothes on
our backs which were given to us by United
Nations officials," said Michael, an Edo State
indigene who had been in Libya for nearly ten
months, washing cars for a living while nursing
the hope of reaching Europe one day.
Arrested in February for staying illegally, Michael
endured several months in a Libyan prison before
the insufferable conditions of the prisoners
attracted the attention of United Nations
officials who procured their eventual release.
"I was thinking of how I was going to start
my life again," he admitted. "Many of us
would have ended up in crime if not for
this gift."
Upon arrival, the National Emergency
Management Agency (NEMA) provided
transportation vehicles for the returnees to their
respective states along with a gesture of N10,000
by the Swiss government.
However, the majority chose to seek help from
Joshua, who is famed for his extensive
humanitarian gestures.
"We decided to come to The SCOAN because we
know how Prophet T.B. Joshua has been helping
people around the world," Michael explained,
referring to multiple other occasions where Joshua
has rendered assistance to Nigerian deportees.
"I can only thank the man of God. Which other
Nigerian could have done this for us at such a
time in this country?" he tearfully pondered,
decrying the muted response from the Nigerian
government to their plight.
According to Collins, the young Nigerian had no
intention to traverse Libya. Wild promises from a
'friend' of a glamorous life in Europe lured him
away from a stable job in Abuja, not knowing that
the European dream would lead him to a Libyan
dungeon.
The fantasy turned to a nightmare as Libyan
police broke into the commune where he was
residing with dozens of other Nigerians en-route
to a 'better life' abroad that never materialised.
"We are not here to blame or accuse the Libyan
government," he stated, recounting the inhumane
conditions he endured in prison in which several of
his colleagues died.
One of the deportees hobbled to the church on
crutches. "I had a serious motor accident shortly
after arriving to join my wife in Libya," he
narrated. "I have been in pain ever since but I
thank God for using Prophet T.B. Joshua to wipe
our tears away today."
Joshua, who recently celebrated his 53rd birthday
on June 12th 2016, also assisted Nigerian
deportees who returned from Libya earlier this
year, as well as aiding Nigerians returned from
South Africa last month.
Ihechukwu Njoku is a freelance Nigerian journalist.
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