Curtailing the excesses of Evangelist Helen Ukpabio

Once in a while, challenges of life dictate that men and women of virtue and good will stand up to confront injustice, intimidation and oppression. Once in a while, in our journey through life, we are confronted with obstacles, that on the surface of it need not have been but nevertheless persistent. These are times when our revulsion should be strongly demonstrated. This is particularly apt in the face of a festering sore in Akwa Ibom state that has turned itself into a monster that refused to be tamed by societal (and even international) revulsion. She is roaming freely like in pre-historic times when the dinosaurs roam the earth surface. She appeared untameable, finding willing collaborators amongst her befuddled congregation who are always willing to act as her “almajiris”.

Without mincing words, the monster in question is Evangelist Helen Ukpabio, the founder of Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries, Nigeria. Helen has remained defiant even in the face of national and international condemnation of her tainted and psychotic teachings. Her “almajiris” are nothing more than her abundant religious thugs who would readily use the name of Jesus Christ to disrupt organised conferences. The paranoid and almost schizophrenic-like antics and behaviour of Helen Ukpabio defies decency and calls for immediate reaction on the part of the government of Nigeria. No human being should be greater than the laws of the land. Religious practices should also be conducted within the confines of established rules without infringing on the rights of children and adults alike. These are the tenets the rather egoistic Helen does not want to respect and hence the continued conflict and tension in Akwa Ibom state.

We are all probably aware of the release of a documentary (still accessible on the net) titled “Saving Africa’s Child Witches” by Gary Foxcroft of SteppingStone Nigeria (SSN), produced by Mag Gavan for British TV Channel 4. What most may not probably be aware of is the aftermath of the release of this documentary. Helen Ukpabio saw the release of this documentary as a declaration of war on her hitherto nefarious activities. She came out smoking from all ends and has vowed to make Akwa Ibom state uncomfortable for her “enemies”. Her reaction is the least expected of a genuine minister of the word. Amongst others, she had organised a police raid and beating of staff and children of the CRARN Centre in Eket and had taken SSN, CRARN and Akwa Ibom government to court.

We accept it as definitely within Helen Ukpabio’s right to resort to court of law if she feels aggrieved. This is a much civilised action. However, being the ego-filled, power intoxicated person she is, Helen did not stop there. She has continued to take sadistic pleasure in the physical intimidation of CRARN, SSN and all those opposed to her tainted teachings. Recently, on Wednesday, 29^th July 2009, SSN in conjunction with CRARN and other sister organisations including the Nigerian Humanist Movement of Leo Igwe, organised a conference on “Child Rights and Witchcraft” in Calabar. Helen Ukpabio supporters (nee almajiris) numbering about 150 to 200 descended on the venue causing mayhem. Leo Igwe was thoroughly beaten up by the mob and had a number of possessions stolen from him. For more details and a visual account of this reign of terror by Helen Ukpabio’s mob, please visit the attached footage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DbWktZEj6OZ8

In the light of the continued reign of terror by Helen and her hypnotised, brain-washed and ill-guided supporters, it behoves on civilised men and women all over the world to strongly call on the Nigerian government to call Helen Ukpabio to order. She and her misguided type of evangelists and pastors should be brought to book. It is imperative that the Nigerian government take steps to ensure that ill-gotten wealth on the part of those using religion to stigmatise children, is ploughed back into rehabilitating stigmatised children.

We boldly state that no one or group has the right to compromise the future and comfort of innocent children on the platform of some obscene religious doctrine. Thus, it behoves on us all to protect those fundamental values essential for the sustenance of human civilisation. The rights of children deserve respect from us all, irrespective of religion. We also must not compromise organised resistance (on the platform of religion) to freedom of expression. Helen Ukpabio by her behaviour and attitude has violated these two sacrosanct values of the human race. Nigerian children should have the right to peaceful existence without the fear of child-haters like Helen Ukpabio. We call on you all to join in the effort to convince the Nigerian government of the paramount need to curtail the excesses of Helen Ukpabio. Helen Ukpabio must be brought to justice!

Please log on to the attached petition site to append your signature. Your signature is valuable and important. It could be all that is required to save the life of a potential “child witch”.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/make-helen-ukpabio-face-justice

Thank you.

Olusegun Fakoya, MD.

Robot  # 1 | 31.07.2009 06:31

In the light of the continued reign of terror by Helen and her hypnotised, brain-washed and ill-guided supporters, it behoves on civilised men and women all over the world to strongly call on the Nigerian government to call Helen Ukpabio to order. She and her misguided type of evangelists and pastors should be brought to book. ...Read the full article.

ifeolooni  # 2 | 31.07.2009 11:30

the woman should be prosecuted if found guilty,be sent to juvenile correctional facility cos she is not smarter than a 7 yr old

ayotee2000  # 3 | 31.07.2009 16:42

My people perish for lack of knowledge.:idea:

valteena  # 4 | 31.07.2009 17:05

The woman was also said to have used the police and her lawyer to attack the CRARN Centre in Eket and even gravely injured some of the children at the centre who protest their raid. Can someone please tell what fuels this woman's audacious and ungodly acts and why she seem to be unstopable

akuluouno  # 5 | 31.07.2009 19:17

Villagers. If Mohammed Yusuf is Boko Haram, then Helen Ukpabio is Hoko Baram meaning children is sin.:twisted: I am fasting and praying that she and her fellow travellers one day attack police stations and army barracks in pursuit of these kids and the rest like Yusuf will be history for her.:D

Silent 1  # 6 | 01.08.2009 03:40

Pervasive impunity and gross irresponsibilty have chained Nigeria to a system of injustices and corruption which, in turn, wraps her in near intractable underdevelopment......... Why is this woman still roaming destructively free? Why are we so scared to touch religion? -- why has the Law or State not touched her? It used to be, maybe not so long ago that, the dignity and rights of the human being were defined by religion and, anything, everything was justified in the name of "God" -- horrors, chivalry and all. Now we have the Geneva convention other statutes; surely she should not escape these guidelines, even if she escapes religion's.

quietswami  # 7 | 01.08.2009 06:37

@ O Fakoya, I commend you for drawing attention to this particularly disturbing situation, and the petition action you have set up. I have signed up and do implore villagers to do so as well. "Evil only succeeds when good men {women} do nothing" - House Acknowledge that the petition itself may not solve the real issues at stake, but if all it achieves is increased awareness, then a start has been made! As a nation, we seem to have regressed to medieval times with religion taking centre stage over or else without any real evolutionary progress as a collective. The age of enlightenment and renaissance seem to have by-passed our nation - we appear to have acquiesced and conceded our rationale and intellectual capabilities to religion - an escapist fantasy awaiting divine intervention to save us from ourselves! If the many religious subscriptions and number of subscribers were to be taken at face value, Nigeria should be the holiest nation on the face of the earth - heaven on earth but alas hell couldn't be any worse! Unreasoned religion beliefs is the succour of the ignorant, and the dominant role of religion in Nigeria is a revealing indication for the state of the country. True religion should be about the pursuit of individual spiritual evolution and enlightenment - not prescribed, unquestioned, inciting, indoctrinating, imposed, and crucially not to create demi-gods/goddesses of our fellow humanoids! A Catch 22 scenario for Nigeria - to be truly religious requires a level of intelligence and awareness but how does one achieve intelligence and awareness where one is already stuck in a religion?! Where religion is being practised by the intelligent and aware, a collective can evolve and live in harmony because all appreciate, acknowledge, and respect the rights of the individual, and the many ways each chooses to enlightenment. This should be the bedrock of our laws, and this should be the foundational basis to assess our collective. The reported killing of the leader of the Boko Haram in police custody is tragic and unfortunate - a missed opportunity to allow the rule of law to prevail. A matyr has now been created, and the self-sustaining unending evil cycle continues. The rule of law should be allowed to prevail in this case to send an emphatic message to everyone that all are equal before the law - where any breaches of the law has occured the full weight of justice should be brought to bear! The rights of the children have been breached in this case with unproven and unlawful castigations; the rights of the supporting voluntary organisations aiding the children have equally been breached by the violence perpetrated; and the rights of the evangelist's congregation have been breached by her beliefs and actions to indoctrinate and incite! Let us uphold the law - it may just set us free from the suffocating domination of religion in our collective - perhaps awaken us to the fact that the knowledge and answers that we seek are not in the realms of the esoteric divine but within our intellectual grasp - if only we choose to acknowledge and access this yet untapped reservoir!

Ade  # 8 | 01.08.2009 19:31

A Chance Encounter with a Flashy Helen Ukpabio at Heathrow, London in 2008 Judge not so that you won't be judged. However, I couldn't help but get involved in this discussion. To me it was no coincidence when I stumbled on "a so-called Evangelist" Helen Ukpabio when I was connecting a flight from Heathrow London to Lagos sometime in November 2008. It was a couple of weeks after seeing the documentry on the fate of alleged children witches in Akwa Ibom. At the new terminal 5 at Heathrow airport, passengers often have to be conveyed by a bus to board the plane. And into the bus came a flamboyantly dressed dark-skinned woman in a bright colour lace attire. On her face was an entirely dark-coloured "designer" sunglasses. In hand were couple of colourful plastic brand name-bearing bags, suggesting that she must have took her time at the duty free shops at the airport. Apart from these, one thing that stood out was that she did not have any jewelry on her neck or hand, which to my experience is unusual going by the colourfullness of her other attires. Initially, I did not know who she was until she removed her sunglasses. And I asked myself; is this the same woman of God? She didn't look modest at all. She seemed to be travelling all alone. I was almost going to scream to get the attention of other passengers that this is the same woman that was partly responsible for the fatal fate of some children in Nigeria. But I realized that I was still on UK soil and wouldn't want to cause what could typically be regarded as a security threat at a airport these days. To me; it is no coincidence that I stumbled on this woman just few weeks after seeing the documentary, when I'd asked myself "Is this a woman of God?", after seeing her countenance and hearing her talk to someone interviewing her in the documentary. So, I only had few weeks to get an answer to that question, after seeing her in person, seeing her carriage, and her demeanor during that chance encounter. Then I could only say that only God knows those that truly worship him.