THE CASE OF MISS TAMARA EGBEDI VERSUS REV. (DR) CHRIS E. KWAKPOVWE

3.  All roads lead to LEKKI MANNA MO @ Beside Oando filling station, Ikate-Elegushi

One Miss Tamara Egbedi commenced a suit in 2011 against the Registered Trustees of Chapel of Liberty and Rev. (Now  Bishop) Dr. Chris Kwakpovwe as defendants. She claimed the sum of N1, 454,000 (One Million Four Hundred and Fifty Four Thousand Naira) as special damages. She also claimed the sum of N20,000,000 (Twenty Million Naira) as general damages and a further sum of N1,000,000(One Million Naira) as cost for completing her medical treatment.

Her story is that she fell into an uncovered gutter and broke her teeth when she attended the end of fast World Anointing Service organized by the Ministry on 22nd January, 2010. She claimed that the uncovered gutter ran in between the seats in the overflow provided by the Ministry within the premises of the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos. The Ministry defended the suit and placed the following evidence before the Court:

1. The National Stadium is situated on a vast expanse of land and the Ministry was granted permission by the National Sports Commission to use just a little portion of the Stadium for about twelve hours.

2. There were several tenants occupying space at the National Stadium, including a night club/ drinking joint. Therefore it is possible that the claimant had sustained her alleged injury elsewhere, possibly at this night club or some other part of the stadium or it is also possible that she even feigned the so- called injury because of the reasons we shall give in this write- up.

3. There were no uncovered gutters within the area assigned to the Ministry for the program by the National Sports Commission.

4. The sitting area used by the Ministry for the program was well lit with flood lights everywhere and there were over three hundred USHERS attending to worshippers to ensure their comfort and safety.

5. The 2010 World Anointing Night, like all other programs of the Ministry before and after it, was a huge success. Thousands of worshippers that attended the program left with astounding testimonies and many sent a glowing feedback of appreciation to God on how their lives were touched at that program. There was not a single complaint of anyone falling into a gutter or sustaining any injury as a result of the Ministry’s negligence or poor organization! PRAYERS TO BEGIN EACH MONTH OF 2018! 

6. Miss Tamara Egbedi surfaced from nowhere on the morning of 23d January, 2010  with an unsubstantiated claim that she fell into a gutter within the premises of the National Stadium when she came for the program. None of the ushers or medical personnel on duty saw her with the alleged injuries on the night of the program. Note that there were ambulances from Lagos State government with medical doctors and nurses on duty to attend to emergencies but none of them saw her on the night of the program.

7. Miss Tamara claimed that she fell into the alleged gutter at about 9pm and waited till about 5am without seeing any official of the Ministry. At about 5am when the program had ended and worshippers were on their way home, she demanded from the ushers to speak to the Bishop who was at that time ministering to some people with special cases on the Altar. As the pulpit ushers were attending to her to ascertain the reason why she wanted to see the Bishop, she started shouting at the top of her voice that she must see the Bishop immediately. As she was about to create a scene, the Bishop beckoned to the ushers to know the cause of the problem. The Bishop immediately granted her audience but her first utterance to the Bishop was a rude shock! She said: “See my mouth…., I will sue you for this injury! My lawyers are outside.” The Bishop in an attempt to understand what was happening, wanted to calm her down so that she could narrate what had happened to her, but she then screamed, “Don’t touch me! “Don’t touch me!”

8. The Bishop then instructed one of the female pastors present to attend to her and get the full details of her complaint. As the pastor approached her to hear her story, she said she wanted N2.5million naira as compensation for the alleged injury.

9. Not minding Miss Tamara’s initial antagonistic outbursts and ridiculous financial demands, the Ministry being one dedicated to the Biblical principles of REGULAR BENEVOLENCE TO WIDOWS, THE NEEDY, ORPHANAGES, ETC, did not initially resort to a legal approach to settle the matter but assigned some officials to investigate her story and claim of injury and report thereafter to the Ministry in Council. When it could not be substantiated that Miss Tamara had sustained the injury WITHIN THE ARENA assigned to the Ministry for the program (as there were no uncovered gutters found within the area), and there was no visible or noticeable injury on her face or mouth and that it was doubtful whether she even came for the program at all, the Ministry as an act of BENEVOLENCE, still offered her a modest amount to cover her medical bills.

10. As stated earlier, the initial concern and care showed by the Ministry was an immediate response to her complaint. Verification of the complaint and assistance to get her medical help should never be taken as an admission of responsibility for her injury as erroneously postulated by the judgment of the court. The MINISTRY was only reaching out to a soul by an act of benevolence and care. WE DO THIS REGULARLY TO THE NEEDY whom we dont know!

11. Within the period that the Ministry was carrying out its investigation, she kept making unreasonable financial demands FOLLOWED BY THREATS OF LEGAL ACTION. The Ministry’s officials held several, unfruitful meetings with her where she claimed that the modest amount of 100,000 naira as at 2010 offered by the Ministry as an act of benevolence was insufficient to cover her medical bills. She demanded instead that the Ministry compensate her to the tune of millions of naira. THE EMPHASIS WAS PURELY ON RIDICULOUS, FINANCIAL COMPENSATION for an unsubstantiated claim.  So it therefore became very clear to the Ministry  that this was not JUST A CASE OF INJURY BUT OF FINANCIAL EXTORTION.

12. She eventually instructed her lawyers to write to the Ministry with threats of legal action if her financial demands were not met. It  WAS AT THIS POINT THAT THE MINISTRY INSTRUCTED ITS LAWYERS TO WRITE A REPLY TO HER LETTER. The Ministry’s lawyer replied with the “Lets meet in court” statement quoted in the Court’s judgment. This was because All efforts hitherto by the Ministry to come to an amicable and reasonable settlement with Miss Tamara had proved abortive and impossible.

In her evidence before the court, and in a desperate bid to justify her claim of special damages of the sum of N1, 454,000 (One Million Four Hundred and Fifty Four Thousand Naira), she tendered all sorts of invoices and receipts and called two medical doctors as witnesses! Although her tons of documents and medical doctors were not able to link the Ministry to the alleged injury, this only served to indicate that the WHOLE saga was a premeditated ploy from the beginning to extort money from the Ministry.

The court   delivered its judgment on 9th April, 2018 granting her claim of sum of N1, 454,000 (One Million Four Hundred and Fifty Four Thousand Naira) for special damages. The court further granted her another N1million for medical treatment and a further N7million as general damages! While we leave the lawyers and legal scholars to embark on a thorough perusal of the judgment and expose the many errors and absurdities contained therein, suffice it to say that the Ministry believes that the judgement is erroneous and oppressive and HAS APPEALED against it to the COURT OF APPEAL.

The questions however are:

1. Why is the court bent on apportioning  blame of the alleged injury on the Ministry when it is doubtful whether she even sustained the alleged injury in the section assigned to the Ministry for the program or whether she even attended the program?

 2. Why didn’t Miss Tamara sue the National Sports Commission (Owners of the Stadium) as one of the Defendants?

 3. Why didn’t any of the ushers or officials of the Ministry see her when she sustained the injury that night?

 4. Which part of her evidence  made the ministry liable when the owners of the premises who were in control of the premises were exonerated? The Ministry applied that the National Sports Commission who is the owner of the premises be joined as a co-Defendant in the suit. But the Court completely exonerated the National Sports Commission and in a bid to apportion total  blame on the Ministry, forgot to add the National Sports Commission as a party to the suit in the judgment!

 5. How can an individual hire  another individual’s premises for a program at a fee and there is an alleged injury caused by a purported gutter(uncovered) in the individual’s premises and the individual renting the space is held liable while the owner of the property is deliberately let off the hook?

This is just to show in part the obvious prejudice that the said judgment is tainted with!

The Ministry views this case as a persecution of the body of Christ. It is SPIRITUAL  WARFARE! So all well-meaning Christians and indeed SINCERE SOULS should not treat it with levity but should see it as a stunt on the Body of Christ. IF NOT CHECKED NOW, IT COULD HAPPEN TO ANY OTHER MINISTRY TOMORROW! GOD FORBID!

Here is a lady who claimed to have VOLUNTARILY attended a church/MINISTRY program and then suddenly turn around to start making ridiculous financial demands from the Ministry over an alleged injury not caused by the same. SHE WAS NOT KNOWN TO ANYBODY IN THE MINISTRY OR WITHOUT! SHE WAS NOT EVEN PICKED UP BY ANY OF OUR CCTV OR CRANE CAMERAS.

She has been contending with the Ministry in court since 2011 till date. She and her cohorts have now taken the war to social media in order to tarnish the image of the Ministry and indeed the Body of Christ but the truth will prevail at last if not in the court of men, then  in the SUPREME  COURT OF THE God WHO THEY ARE PERSECUTING!

WE IMPLORE ALL, NOT TO HATE BUT TO LOVE EVEN YOUR PERSECUTORS BECAUSE KARMA IS A BITCH AND WE ARE PRAYING FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED IN THIS UNGODLY SAGA.

By the grace of God, the ODM Ministry has organized prophetic and healing services across the globe – in USA, UK, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Zambia Zimbabwe, Canada, Ghana and 32 other countries. And these services are always jammed to capacity with the Hand and move of God in action with diverse testimonies! WE HAVE NEVER BEEN SUED BY ANYONE IN ANY OF THESE COUNTRIES neither have we received any report of accidents caused by poor planning or arrangement BECAUSE OF THE NEAR- PERFECTION of our plans even in these FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

BEFORE 2010 in which Miss Tamara claimed that she was injured and SINCE 2010 till date, we have been holding and organanizing the World ANOINTING NIGHT every January at the Stadium and now TBS and it has been NEAR PERFECTION with amazing and stupendous attendance from various nations of the world including expatriates. There has been NO REPORT of injuries! Her so-called injury is the first and ONLY of such complaints ever! WHY?

These enemies in Nigeria have an agenda which would soon be exposed by THE LORD! The Ministry has appealed this judgment in order to save other MINISTERS and MINISTRIES/CHURCHES in Africa from these kinds of evil gang- ups that are desperate for money!