On Sunday, the youth members of the Assemblies of God Church, Zion Family, situated at 134B Wethedral Road, Owerri, Imo State, participated in a protest against their pastor, Reverend Obinna Nwoko. This protest resulted in the church premises being locked, barring all members from entering and leading to the cancellation of services, even with other congregants present.
The demonstration was a reaction to a petition filed against Reverend Nwoko by the Odionyemma family, which accused him of misusing the Ofo, a traditional staff of authority within Igbo culture. The youth contended that the allegations were groundless and were influenced by the family’s meddling in church affairs.
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Kingsley Asuzu, the President of the youth fellowship, remarked that the choice to lock the church stemmed from frustration over the Odionyemma family’s continuous attempts to dominate church matters. He expressed his anger regarding the petition submitted to the General Council of the church in Enugu, which claimed misconduct by Nwoko. Asuzu firmly asserted that the accusations lacked merit, defending the pastor’s character while criticizing the family’s actions.
He commented, “How can they charge him with serious misconduct? They simply want to exploit that to obstruct him in their petition. He has done nothing wrong, and the family should be held accountable for the ongoing issues in the church.” He also pointed out instances where the family allegedly tried to publicly shame the pastor during services.
Asuzu underlined the position of the youth and other church members by stating, “We want to inform the General Superintendent and the entire Assemblies of God community that the Zion family will resist any form of injustice or inequity in relation to the handling of this petition.”
In light of the situation, Pastor Godfrey Odionyemma acknowledged the existence of the petition from the Odionyemma family but indicated that the issue is being managed by the church’s leadership. He stated, “The matter is currently being carefully addressed by the apex leadership of the Assemblies of God Church, Nigeria. I have not been authorized to provide further details on this issue.”
Pastor Odionyemma highlighted the necessity of complying with the church’s constitution and guidelines while handling this situation, avoiding additional comments as the leadership works through the matter. Attempts to reach Imo State’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Henry Okoye, for further information were unsuccessful.
