For the purpose of this discourse, let us simply recognize
Political Economy as the politics of distribution of resources
among the component entities.
The Benny Hinn crusade might have come and gone in Nigeria, it has
been very obvious that it left some problems more than the
solutions that were supposed to be proffered to the nation’s
calamity.
For one, it reopened another unfortunate side of Nigerians,
pastors inclusive. All over the world Nigerians have been
adjudged rightly or wrongly as one of the leading nations
when it comes to corruption accentuated by greed and selfishness.
Before Dr Benny Hinn, many preachers have come to Nigeria
with much pomp and pageantry with preparations for mobilizing
participants cutting across faith and denominations with
huge amount of money to go with it.
In fact this is one of the reasons why many church leaders
are known for running over one another whenever it comes
to the distribution of the spiritual cake. The examples
of Evang Reinhard Bonnke and Dr. K. A. Paul readily come
to mind. No one is therefore left in surprise when the hype
of the coming of Dr. Benny Hinn ruled Nigeria.
 |
Courtesy of Bishop Dr. Olanrewaju Obembe, Nigerians were
told of the coming of Dr. Benny Hinn ostensibly to come
and break 'curse' of the land and at the end of the day herald
a total healing. In fact some people embraced it without
trying to know what it had in stock for them, and even the
implication it might attract.
Nigerians were told to participate as part of their contribution
to help plant the gospel of Jesus Christ more firmly in
Nigeria and to turn away curses imposed of the land.
As the programmes kept on drawing closer, none of the followers
was told of any social or financial benefit like those of
Bonnke and K. A. Paul. In fact many of the so called members
of the sub-committees were spent physically and financially
as their leaders in the central working committee kept on
saying that no support ever came from Dr. Benny Hinn,
|
and participants were made to cough out money in terms
of transporting themselves, as their free transports were
stationed in unknown place and they were not put into the
best use.
Ministers were made to cough one thousand naira each for
a ministers conference and an impartation service in which
Dr. Benny Hinn never participated, besides the offering
and special donations from the congregation. Also participants and
even members of the Sub-committees could not be officially
accommodated at the crusade camp.
The above were the experience of members of the sub-committees.
The crusade that was billed to attract 6 million participants
was never advertised in the media, and only paltry pasting
of posters and display of banners were noticed until some
few days before the event.
Back to our main topic, by the end of the three-day crusade
no one was surprised to learn of the state of anger in which
Benny Hinn left and the intrigues and controversies that
followed. To a very great extent the crusade was elitist
in planning and not much was done to mobilize the grassroots
people who were supposed to be the larger part of the expected
crowd.
Also it was like the organizers were not ready to be open
with the financial involvement in the crusade as they were
also not interested in sharing what would amount to the
physical or financial benefits of the extended committee members.
Hence the crusade could not meet the expectation of the
organizers. All said and done, I think a crusade like this
needs the involvement of the generality of the body of Christ
rather than being cornered by a few clique.
Also it is time Nigerian pastors were made to be accountable
for all their financial transactions. Except this is done
openly many people would carry the belief that any attempt
to bring foreign preachers in future would amount to personal
enrichment of the organizers or an attempt to sell Nigerians
cheaply to the deceit of the foreign preachers and sponsor.
And lastly Christian leaders should work on crusades for
the love of Christ rather than for the love of money.
|
