oyedepo
An investigation carried out by SUNDAY PUNCH has
shown that many of Nigeria’s mega rich churches pay
their pastors poor wages, reports SUNDAY
ABORISADE
An extensive investigation carried out by SUNDAY
PUNCH has revealed that many of the country’s
prosperity-preaching, super-rich mega churches pay
their pastors poor wages. The newspaper’s findings
revealed that a substantial majority of the pastors
engaged by the churches, who are polytechnic and
university graduates, earn between N25,000 and
N45,000 a month.
According to our correspondent’s findings, full-time
pastors, in addition to preaching and teaching during
midweek services and Sunday services are also
expected to perform other sundry duties that leave
them with little time for other business endeavours.
Some of the churches reviewed were the Redeemed
Christian Church of God, the Living Faith World
Outreach, popularly known as Winners Chapel,
Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, the Deeper
Christian Life Ministry (an holiness church that has of
late embraced economic empowerment themes),
Christ Embassy International and Lord Chosen
Charismatic Revival Ministries.
Nigeria is home to several Christian denominations
broadly categorised as orthodox and unorthodox
churches. But a clearer categorisation of churches is
the one adopted by the Christian Association of
Nigeria. It divides churches in Nigeria into five broad
categories. According to the CAN website, the groups
are the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria; Christian
Council of Nigeria, comprising the Anglican,
Methodist, Baptist, Foursquare, Presbyterian, Eternal
Sacred Order of C&S, Church of the Lord Aladura and
other orthodox Churches; the Christian Pentecostal
Fellowship of Nigeria and the Pentecostal Fellowship
of Nigeria; Organisation of African Instituted
Churches; and ECWA – Evangelical Church of West
Africa and Northern-Nigerian churches like COCIN,
HKAN NKST, Christian Assemblies, LCCN etc.
In recent years, the Pentecostals, especially
Pentecostal groups that preach faith, miracles and
prosperity, have come to symbolise the face of
Nigerian Christianity to the world. In addition to their
huge memberships, running into tens of millions,
these churches are also widely known because of
their jet-set senior pastors and the businesses they
run. These churches own primary and secondary
schools and universities, micro-finance banks, foods
and beverages companies, huge agricultural farms,
sports teams, printing firms and so on.
Their senior pastors are known to be extremely
wealthy, own private jets, maintain luxury homes in
the country and abroad, and send their children to
some of the best schools in the world.
However, the parish pastors of some of the biggest
churches in the country, who spoke to our
correspondent, painted a picture that showed that they
live in a different world from their senior pastors.
Our correspondent noted that the clergymen spoke
reluctantly for the fear of losing their jobs. Efforts
made by our correspondent to ascertain the financial
health of the churches were unsuccessful as the
churches are known not to make their financial
reports public, neither are they made available to their
members.
The Redeemed Christian Church of God
The RCCG is one of the country’s biggest Pentecostal
churches. It has a group of primary and secondary
schools spread all over the country. The schools are
Redeemer’s International School, Redeemer’s
International Secondary School, Redeemer’s High
School and Christ the Redeemer’s College. The church
also owns Redeemer’s University, Haggai Mortgage
Finance Bank, Lifeway Radio, Dove Media,
Redemption Light Printing Press, hospitals, among
others.
The most senior pastor of the church, Pastor Enoch
Adeboye, a former university lecturer, is known to be
humble and simple in taste, but he is also reputed to
fly a private jet said to have been given to him by the
members of the church.
At the RCCG, newly ordained full-time pastors with
National Diplomas are currently being paid N25,000 a
month while their counterparts with a university
degree receive N35,000 as their monthly
salaries. SUNDAY PUNCH gathered that in some RCCG
churches with small congregations, parish pastors
sometimes use personal funds every Sunday to run
their local churches.
Sources in the church, who disclosed this to our
correspondents in various states across the country,
further explained that a full-time area pastor earns a
minimum monthly salary of N40,000 while a full-time
provincial pastor is entitled to a minimum monthly
salary of N85, 000. According to the church’s
structure, an area pastor is in charge of about five or
six parishes while a provincial pastor is in charge of
about 100 parishes or a state.
A pastor in Lagos, who spoke to our correspondent,
said tithes (10 per cent) of their salaries were usually
deducted before salaries were paid.
However, the pastor refused to be drawn into a
detailed explanation of how he makes ends meet on
such a salary. He said, “The job of a pastor is a
sacrificial one, no doubt, but what we are paid cannot
ordinarily sustain us. The money is definitely not
enough to meet our needs even with our access to
loans and free accommodation provided by the
church.
“Our parish members are most supportive and I
encourage my wife to work. Some of our wives own
small-scale businesses or crèches.”
The pastors said that members of the parishes are
expected to generously support the upkeep of the
pastor’s families and provide “comfortable
accommodation” for them. They also added that the
RCCG paid half of their children’s tuition fees in
schools established by the ministry.
Further investigations revealed that the RCCG is
cutting the costs of running its various missions by
encouraging born-again and well-trained members to
lead the parishes, zones and provinces on a part-time
basis.
Attempts to get the official position of the church on
the welfare of its pastors failed as a member of the
church’s media team, Olanike Olaomo, told our
correspondent that she was not competent to speak
on the issue, when contacted on phone.
She also refused to give out the phone number of the
head of the team.
“If you ask for my candid opinion, I will tell you to
drop your story because no one will give you the
information you are requesting for,” she said.
Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries
Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries is a prayer-
themed ministry led by Dr. Daniel Olukoya. It has
hundreds of branches in Nigeria and beyond. The
church runs school groups, comprising Mountain Top
Nursery and Primary schools, Mountain Top
Secondary schools, Mountain Top University, a
printing press, among others.
Majority of the ministers operate on full-time basis. A
source told SUNDAY PUNCH that the church operates a
“central salary scale for pastors working in God’s
vineyard at the church’s branch, zonal and regional
levels.”
The salary scheme for the clerics ranges from
N25,000 to N80,000 depending on the level of their
deployment.
A pastor in a branch of the church in Abuja, who could
not be named because he was not authorised to give
any information on the matter, said that clerics in the
church’s branches averagely earned between N20,000
and N25,000 monthly. He, however, added that
pastors were also supported by “benevolent church
members.”
The pastor said, “The salary is paid by the region
under which the branch is with strict directive from
the headquarters since the amount payable monthly is
structured. But there are also few newly ordained
ministers who assist pastors-in-charge at zones and
regions during deliverance programmes. These set of
ministers get about N15,000 monthly.”
Also, a zonal pastor with the church in Abuja, who did
not want to be named, told our correspondent that the
salary for his category was between N40,000 and
N45,000.
It was gathered that the church, either at the level of
branch, zonal or regional was expected to provide
accommodation for its pastor.
The support for accommodation, it was learnt, could
come from the region under which the branch
operates if such a branch was unable to bear the
burden alone.
Another pastor, who pleaded anonymity, said they
survived through what he described as the ‘the grace
of God and the support of children of God.’
He disclosed that having chosen to work for God, they
look beyond material comfort and fix their gaze on the
reward from above.
“There are other supports from the church in terms of
education for our children. Since the church has a
school, there is a provision for a certain percentage of
the tuition fees to be waived for pastors’ children. I
have yet started to enjoy the privilege because my
children are still young. When they start going to
school, I will also benefit from it,’’ he stated.
For pastors in the regional arms of the church, they
get about N80,000 monthly according to a pastor in
one of the church’s branches in Benin City, Edo State,
who refused to be named.
When contacted, the Chairman, Media Committee,
MFM, Pastor Oladele Bank-Olemoh, said though he
could not specifically say the amount each of the
pastors in the church gets as salary, the general
overseer takes their welfare seriously.
Bank-Olemoh said, “The general overseer takes care
of them very well. He caters for their accommodation,
school fees of their children and gives them money
personally. Those who abide by the vision of the
church and support the general overseer know that he
does not joke with the welfare of the ministers.
“Every minister in the MFM knows that if you are
conscientious and diligent, you will be blessed. The
money you take as salary is nothing but the blessing
is the most important. You can earn so much and still
not be able to do anything with it. That is what we call
pocket with holes. The general overseer is passionate
about the welfare of the pastors.’’
The Living Faith Church Worldwide
Winners Chapel, one of the foremost and most
popular Pentecostal churches in Nigeria has a chain
of about 30 secondary schools and 50 primary
schools and two universities, Covenant University and
Landmark University. Owned by Bishop David
Oyedepo, who is famed for owning a private jet, the
church also owns one of the country’s biggest and
most sophisticated printing firms, Dominion
Publishing House, Hebron Bottled Water, bottled water
processing plant, a bakery, various restaurants and
stores, among others.
Investigations by our correspondents in the South-
West revealed that a newly-ordained pastor outside
Lagos in Winners Chapel receives N35,000 as monthly
salary while new pastors in Lagos earn between
N45,000 and N55,000. An area pastor with some
years of experience collects N85,000 per month while
a resident pastor (state pastor) now collects N200,000
per month.
Some area pastors who spoke with our
correspondents, strictly on condition of anonymity,
explained that pastors could earn more depending on
their years of experience.
One of them said, “Apart from the salaries, pastors
are usually well taken care of by members of their
local assemblies. Pastors-offering is encouraged and
a pastor could get more than his salary as offering
from just a member in a day.”
Believers LoveWorld
SUNDAY PUNCH investigations revealed that most
pastors of the Believers LoveWorld, a.k.a Christ
Embassy, owned by Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, are
engaged on part-time basis while the few ones on full-
time appointments are paid like other workers in the
ministry.
A part-time pastor of the church in the Ikeja area of
Lagos State and another one in the Bodija area of
Ibadan, in Oyo State confided in our correspondents
that most of their full-time pastors are in the
headquarters.
They said a newly-ordained pastor earns about
N40,000 but that only the headquarters could provide
further details.
When contacted, the Believers LoveWorld officials
declined to make comments on the welfare of their
pastors.
A representative of the church attached to a church in
Lekki reprimanded our correspondent for “picking a
phone number from the website” and added that it was
“wrong.”
Another representative of the church, identified simply
as Pastor Mercy of the Prayer and Counselling Centre
at the church headquarters, said she was not
authorised to speak to the media about issues relating
to the church.
She also refused to give out the contact number of the
spokesperson of the church because of the sensitive
nature of the information requested.
Deeper Christian Life Ministry
Popularly called Deeper Life, the church was founded
by Pastor William Kumuyi. Widely known for its strict
conservativism, the church, in recent times, has
embraced economic-empowerment and Christian
prosperity themes, while not letting go of its
conservatism. With millions of members and
thousands of branches in Nigeria and other parts of
the world, it owns Life Press Limited, Deeper Life
Nursery and Primary School, Deeper Life High School,
Anchor University, among ohers.
A top member of the church told one of our
correspondents that 95 per cent of its members in
Lagos are part-time workers who receive no salary.
He said, “Most of the church’s full-time workers are
not in Lagos. They have jobs so they don’t have to
rely on church district members. The church
encourages its pastors to work, so full time pastors
are a rarity. The most the part-time pastors get is N5,
000 for recharge cards monthly.”
SUNDAY PUNCH gathered that outside Lagos, the
church have three categories of pastors. Part-time
pastors do not earn salaries, they are said to be ‘taken
care of by their local parishes’.
A long-time member of the church said, “Our pastors
who are volunteer full-time pastors are not on the
payroll of the church. The local church where they
belong to may then decide to give them out of the
offering but the tithe goes to the central (unit).”
The last category of pastors, he added, are those who
are overseers and senior pastors and their salaries
range from N2.5m to N6m per annum.”
The phone number of the Secretary, Deeper Life Bible
Church, Pastor Jerry Asemota, who is the only person
authorised to speak on official issues, was switched
off when our correspondent contacted him on
Saturday.
Lords’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries
Investigations by SUNDAY PUNCH revealed that there
is no salary structure for pastors of the Lord Chosen
Charismatic Revival Ministries, founded by Pastor
Lazarus Muoka.
The church runs various primary and secondary
schools while it also has a few standard private
hospitals.
A leader of the church, who spoke with one of our
correspondents, explained that when a new pastor is
ordained and ‘given a pulpit’ (put in charge of a
branch), he is entitled to one-tenth of whatever
income that the church generates every week.
He said, “We don’t have a structured salary system
for our pastors. They are paid based on the money
they generate from tithes and offerings. However, the
headquarters usually give a considerable amount to
their wives to set up a small business.
“It is expected that the proceeds from the wife’s
business will be used to augment the family’s upkeep.
Also, the church ensures that all the pastors’
biological children enjoy free education at all the
Lord’s Chosen primary and secondary schools.
“The church also arranges scholarship for the pastors’
children in their various higher institutions.”
The church leader added that the pastor’s family
could also benefit from the welfare offering, usually
meant for the needy, based on the discretion of the
committee handling the fund.
When our correspondent called the land line on the
website of the church, it did not connect while top
church members kept sealed lips.
CAN, PFN react
Speaking in a telephone interview with one of our
correspondents on Saturday, the Director, Media and
Public Relations of PFN, Simbo Olorunfemi, said
pastors’ welfare is part of the issues that would be
discussed at the group’s forthcoming biennial
conference, scheduled to hold in Edo State.
“The welfare of pastors and indeed Nigerians
generally concerns the PFN. This is part of the issues
to be discussed at the forthcoming conference. The
PFN will make recommendations and suggestions that
would enhance the welfare of pastors to fulfill their
duties effectively,” he told SUNDAY PUNCH .
The General Secretary of the Christian Association of
Nigeria, Rev. Musa Asake, however told SUNDAY
PUNCH that how much mega churches paid their
pastors as salaries was not the business of the
association.
“The Christian Association of Nigeria does not dabble
into how much churches pay their pastors. It is not
the mandate of the association to do so. As an
association, CAN doesn’t discuss issues like that; we
do not discuss doctrines. That is left for individual
churches to decide. If there are issues about how
much pastors earn as salaries in their churches I think
the headquarters of the churches should be able to
respond to that. It is not the business of CAN to look
into how much churches pay their pastors,” Asake told
one of our correspondents.Punch
Alabatvnews.
No comments:
Post a Comment