Metro
Prophet TB Joshua: Five things BBC investigation said about late televangelist
(FILES) In this file photograph taken on January 01, 2015 Nigerian pastor TB Joshua speaks during a New Year’s memorial service for the South African relatives of those killed in a building collapse at his Lagos megachurch on December 31, 2014. – TB Joshua, 57, one of Africa’s most influential preachers with millions of television and social media followers and who founded The Synagogue Church of All Nations, a Christian megachurch in Lagos, has died from an undisclosed cause, his church said on June 6, 2021 on Facebook. (Photo by Pius Utomi EKPEI / AFP)
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on Monday said it has uncovered evidence of widespread abuse and torture by the late Prophet Temitope Balogun (TB) Joshua, the founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN).
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The BBC in its report said that dozens of former members of SCOAN including five British nationals have alleged atrocities committed by the late TB Joshua.
According to the BBC, SCOAN did not respond to the allegations but said previous claims have been unfounded.
Here are five of the allegations against TB Joshua in the two-year investigation.
Widespread abuse and torture
Dozens of eyewitness accounts of physical violence or torture carried out by Joshua, including instances of child abuse and people being whipped and chained.
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A close friend of Rae, Carla, told the BBC that they both visited Nigeria in search of a mysterious man who could seemingly heal people with his hands.
“He was a Christian pastor, with a black beard, in white robes. His name was TB Joshua. His followers called him “The Prophet,” Carla said.
Carla added that she and Rae actually had plans to visit the Synagogue church for only a week.
According to Carla, though, Rae returned home to the UK, especially after she had moved into Joshua’s compound.
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“I left her there,” says Carla, tears flowing freely. “Never will I ever forgive myself for that.
“For me, it was like she died, but I couldn’t grieve her,” Carla revealed due to the abuse and torture her friend suffered.
Abortions
A number of women alleged that Joshua forced them to have abortions inside the church. This is as a result of the alleged rapes by the late Pastor including one woman who says she had nothing less than five abortions for him.
Jessica Kaimu, from Namibia, said her ordeal lasted more than five years. According to Kaimu, she was 17-years-old when Joshua first raped her.
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She added that subsequent instances of rape by TB Joshua led to her having five forced abortions while at the church.
“These were backdoor type… medical treatments that we were going through… it could have killed us,” she told the BBC.
Fake “miracle healings”
Multiple first-hand accounts have detailed how Joshua faked his “miracle healings” which were broadcast to millions of people in Nigeria and around the world.
A man once regarded as Joshua’s number two at SCOAN, Agomoh Paul, who left after staying in the compound for at least a decade (10 years) revealed that the whole miracle thing was scripted.
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“That guy [was] a genius. Everything… [he did was] planned out,” Paul stated.
A major part of this planning was the faking of the “miracles” said Paul, which he noted he oversaw.
Cult-like operations at Synagogue
Multiple other interviewees have compared their experiences at the Synagogue church to being in a cult.
Other interviewees told the BBC that they were stripped and beaten with electrical cables and horse whips, and routinely denied sleep in scenes which looked like cult operations.
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