From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
The Coalition of South East Youth Leaders, COSEYL, the umbrella body of all the youth groups in the South East geopolitical zone has called on the General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church, Pastor William Kumuyi to ignore the warning of Emma Powerful, spokesman of the Indigenous People of Biafra, (IPOB)urging him to cancel his crusade in South East based on security issues.
COSEYL in a statement by its President General, Goodluck Ibem argued that if politicians can consider the zone safe for their political campaigns ,then it should be safer as prayer ground.
“In South East, politicians, political parties are organising their campaigns, people are doing burial ceremonies to bury their love ones, white wedding and traditional weddings are going on and Emma Powerful did not tell them not to do their programmes and the same person is warning the General Overseer of Deeper Life Bible Church not to go ahead with his crusade. Something is really fishy in his statement.
“We are really surprised how Emma Powerful became so concerned about Pastor Kumuyi’s security. Kumuyi is a Man of God protected by the Most High God. It is not the business of anyone to worry about how Almighty God protect his servants. For Emma Powerful to suddenly ask the Man of God to call off his scheduled crusade lives much to be desired.
“Emma may not understand the import of his statement by asking Kumuyi not to come to South East. Asking the highly revered Man of God not to come to South East will cause serious fruition between the South East and the South West.
“We call on Pastor William Kumuyi to disregard the statement by Emma Powerful and come to South East to preach the gospel of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ to our people.
“South East is very safe. Businessmen and women have been coming to do their business without any molestation whatsoever.” Ibem stated.
However, Powerful in its latest statement at the weekend has insisted that Kumuyi should listen to the voice of reasoning and avoid Aba for the crusade sighting unconfirmed security issues as its reason.
He said “We maintain our sincere advise to pastor William Kumuyi of deeper life ministry on his planned crusade in Aba. This advice must be taken seriously and not ignored because if anything untoward happens to anyone in the said crusade we will hold him responsible.
“They should however understand that IPOB will not fold its hands and watch our people deliberatly put in harms way to be slaughtered because of crusade, when they know that politicians will employ their local thugs to slaughter people and tag it that IPOB was responsible for such attack.
“The Christian Association of Nigeria should rather appreciate the genuine advise from IPOB and ESN members for giving pastor Kumuyi a security intel because we are here on the ground in Biafraland.
“Is CAN saying that insecurity cannot only be curbed with prayers? Security intel and strategy are what is required in a situation as this which is what we are applying now by advising Kumuyi and his deeper life ministry. The CAN must understand that IPOB has Judeo-Christians also as family members and it’s our responsibility to protect it from political thugs and criminal elements.
“IPOB does not have any issues with Kumuyi or other Pastors or men and women of God for that matter, what we are talking about is the security of Biafrans.
CAN should know that all politicians in Nigeria territory have criminal thugs they use to pursue a particular political interest and these people are not minding the repercussions or outcome, therefore we still advise Kumuyi and deeper life ministry to think twice and stop this crusade.” Powerful advised.
