Opinion on Restructuring Nigeria: The Christ Embassy Church Example

By Tony Osborg,

There is this Christ Embassy Church in my locality that has got me thinking.

This particular branch of the Loveworld Ministry started as an  undergraduate school fellowship. They had their fellowships in university classrooms and auditoriums. When the university authority could no longer tolerate their (all religious bodies on campus) vexatious disturbance of the academic environment, they opted out to renting a hall outside the university environment.



From that their rented hall, they acquired a land. As I write today, they are nearing completion of their multi million Naira edifice within the same locality. From my estimation, their ongoing two story edifice should be nothing less than two hundred million Naira. This is just one of the many churches in my locality.

This is what surprises me.

If a group of local people with diverse ethnicity but believing in one God under one pastor and church, could come together, agree and pull resources (internally) to pursue a common cause towards building a church building by themselves and for themselves, and without external support, then why do people still oppose federalism with the fear that without federal allocation (support), the local people will not and cannot organize themselves, pull resources together and pursue a common goal of providing basic social needs for their communities and locality political institutions?


If Nigerian Christians in their primordial wisdom, can, in a federal manner, pull resources together to further the growth of their local churches without asking questions and without hoping for any earthly return for their contributions, one would only wonder why the same Nigerians would, in their political wisdom, not be willing to aggregate themselves politically, pull resources together to further the growth of their communities by funding the government which in turn would provide them tangible earhly benefits such as good roads, functional primary health care, basic education, stable electricity and efficient security.

Why would a religious Nigerian be willing to fund a church that offers no social benefit other than an uncertain hypothetical heavenly reward and refuse to fund a political institution that offers him/her tangible socioeconomic benefits?

Why would an average Nigerian believe that his local or community govt institutions would collapse without federal intervention as he/she lacks the local capacity to fund the institutions of the government?


Why would a Nigerian conveniently evade payings taxes to the govt but without hesitation and with utmost dedication pay regularly, all of its religious taxes such as offerings and tithes?

Why would Nigerians evade contributing to the purchase  of a electricity tranformer for their own local use but without hesitation proceed to contribute to the flamboyant lifestyle of their pastors?

Abi these pastors dey jazz dem?

Why are Nigerians more conscious of their religious duties than they are to their political obligations?

If you believe you cannot fund your local govt, you should not pay electricity bills, and you should not make paytaxes (as will be required under a restructured Nigeria), but you can go ahead to give out ten percent of your monthly income to the church, then you might be part of the problems we have in Nigeria.

The church offers you nothing, at least, nothing tangible that I can see. Yet you have consistently and sheepishly contributed to its growth and development.


The state offers you everything (including the funds you give out to the church), yet you have refused to participate in the building process of the state.

You are part of the reason why we need to restructure Nigeria.

If you can fund your church without compulsion, let me see how you will refuse to fund your local government when your future (and that of your church) will become tied to it.

If we can, in our localities, aggregate and commit ourselves to development of our churches, we certainly can aggregate and commit ourselves to the development of our local and community based governments with little or no support from crude oil allocations and federal subventions.

We can make Nigeria work by making our localities work. Just in the same way was have made our churches work.

True federalism means giving us at the local level the constitutional power and authority to take charge of our own development or underdevelopment (as we please).


If we can do it with our churches, we can do it with our various govts.

If you can fund your various churches to survive and grow till this time, why are you afraid of funding your local governments to also survive and grow into the future?

Dear Nigerians, it is time for us to be real with ourselves. Our political institutions are more important than our religious institutions, yet we pay more attention to the latter than the former.

What is wrong with us.