Njoku. Read below...
Thirty-nine of the reported 172 Nigerians who were
deported from Libya on Friday 11th March 2016 were
received by Pastor T.B. Joshua of The Synagogue,
Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) during his church
service on Sunday 13th March. According to a post on
the church's official Facebook page, the deportees
were each given the sum of N100,000 by Joshua, who
is well known for his charitable gestures.
Fidelis Onos, who spoke on behalf of the group, said that
most of them had been imprisoned for up to one year in
Libya after they were suddenly arrested. The majority were
working as bricklayers in the North African country where
they had sought 'greener pastures'. "We are not here to
blame Libya," Fidelis is quoted as saying. "If Nigeria was
okay, we would never have left in the first place. It's the war
in Libya that turned it to what it is today – in a place where
there is no government, what can you expect?"
He explained that United Nations officials visited the
Nigerians in the Libyan prison and were touched at their
plight, promising to arrange their repatriation back to Nigeria.
They were finally able to travel under the voluntary returnee
programme organised by the International Organisation for
Migration (IOM).
Arriving in Lagos with only the clothes they came with, the
deportees were provided with a meagre N6,500, leading to
resentful outbursts from many at the airport. "Frustrated,
angry and despondent, a group of them decided to seek
refuge at The SCOAN, having watched Emmanuel TV in
Libya," the church wrote on their Facebook page.
"Upon learning of their arrival in the church, Prophet T.B.
Joshua immediately sent evangelists to provide food,
alongside medical aid to some of the most malnourished in
their midst," it continued. After giving the young men
N3.9million ($20,000), many were emotionally moved and
shed tears.
"If not for a man like T.B. Joshua, most of us would have
ended up going into armed robbery, kidnapping or even
joining a group like Boko Haram," said Godspower Chibuike
as he appreciated Joshua for the gift. "If youths were
encouraged like this, we wouldn't even think of travelling to
places like Libya," another deportee stated, adding that he
had never seen such an amount of money in his life.
The group were subsequently provided with toiletries
alongside brand new clothing, as they had worn the same set
of clothes since their arrival in Nigeria. "Remember, what you
make happen for others, God will make happen for you," T.B.
Joshua stated in the conclusion of the Facebook post.
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