The Zion Assembly’s Commonwealth filled Sunday beyond capability, even as its lead preacher is embroiled in extensive accusations of rape that have caused uproar nationwide.
Since Thursday morning, when the interview of one of his supposed victims captured Internet frenzy, Biodun Fatoyinbo has held Nigerian headlines.
In an emotional interview, Busola Dakolo, a former COZA member, informed YNaija that she was 16 when Mr Fatoyinbo raped her in Ilorin, Kwara State.
The accusations spurred the preacher’s effusive condemnation, which faced prior accusations of two women’s sexual misconduct.
As the protest raged in Lagos and Abuja simultaneously, church members poured into the church’s Abuja headquarters.
We noted that a crowd of thousands of worshipers overflew the auditorium with several tents outside during the Sunday service.
It was hard to predict the attendance, but it beat the expectations of many internet commentators who had urged members to stay away in order not to be seen as condoning the supposed sexual abuse and exploitation of their pastor.
Three members inside the church informed us that the charges did not disturb them, attributing them to ‘ the devil’s agents. ‘
They also said the pastor was a victim of a constant attempted blackmail, a statement adduced by Mr Fatoyinbo himself when he officially replied on Friday night to the recent allegations.
The employees also informed us that the attendance on Sunday was exceptionally high and exceeded the latest services on Sunday.
Mr Fatoyinbo also attended the church to give a brief sermon, although he was commonly rumored to be an absence because of the scandal.
His wife, Omodele Fatoyinbo, opened the sermon by defending her husband, stating that as an unbeliever he would never be engaged in a rape.
There were also protests on the outside of the church over the accusations. The demonstrators said that Mr Fatoyinbo had to step down from church administration to face trial over the accusations.
Some pro-Fatoyinbo demonstrators arrived with placards in support of the pastor while the protest continued.
A man who claimed to be a church member was seen organizing the pro-Fatoyinbo demonstrators, writing down their names and offering them directions.
