The President of the Living Faith Church, a.k.a. Winners Chapel, Bishop David Oyedepo, has revealed that some officials of the church were recently discovered to have stolen millions of naira belonging to the church.
The Nation newspapers (Nigeria) reported that Oyedepo made the revelation during the church’s 2020 edition of the empowerment summit for its ordained workers.
The event was attended by pastors, zonal ministers and their assistants, deacons and other ordained workers.
The visibly angry cleric neither mention the names of the officials nor disclose the exact amount they stole.
He however said some of the church’s accountant were among the officials, all of who have been dismissed.
Oyedepo expressed disappointment that professionals who ought to have identified and forestalled frauds were the ones stealing.
“Can you imagine accountants perpetrating fraud in the house of God? We had no choice but to dismiss them. You can imagine top church officials engaging in doubling figures and other dubious practices.
“Even after we dismissed them, we discovered more fraud. Those who should discover the fraud were the ones involved in it. One of them refused to confess until the last minute.”
The foremost clergyman advised members of the church not to employ the dismissed officials. He said he gave the advice because the dismissed officials “will come to you for employment.”
He said, “Don’t employ them and don’t sympathise with them. Whoever sympathises with the wicked is wicked himself.
“Don’t sympathise with any perpetrator of fraud, otherwise you are a partaker of the evil act.”
Both Oyedepo and his deputy, Bishop David Abioye, ministered at the summit, which is organised annually.
Living Faith Church a.k.a. Winners Chapel is reputed to be one of the richest ministries in the world.
Its international headquarters is located in Ota, Ogun State of Nigeria, with branches dotting many nations of the world.
