T.B JOSHUA ABANDONS 50-ROOM MANSION IN HOMETOWN

Flamboyant man of God and founder of Synagogue Church of All Nations, Pastor Temitope Joshua, popularly called T.B Joshua is one man with much love for classy lifestyle. His magnificent church building in Ikotun, an outskirt of Lagos is first of its kind. The splendid and sprawling complex is decorated with marbles in both the exterior and the interior parts and is  said to worth over N500 million.

Though Joshua is trailed by controversies, a visit to his church in Lagos is always an exciting experience as it is always jam-packed by worshippers from all walks of life, and the church plays host to more foreigners, including Europeans and Americans, than any other house of worship in the country.

Apart from this, Pastor T.B Joshua constantly offers assistance to the sick, the poor and the underprivileged, who throng his church for miracles and financial assistance. Joshua's birthday, which is marked with pomp and ceremony, is celebrated by hosting the poor, who are giving monetary gifts and food items by the man of God. Joshua also uses the opportunity to make donations to orphanages and abandoned children.

However, a visit to Arigidi-Akoko Town in Ondo State, where the widely traveled man of God hails from, reveals that Joshua, who many see as affluent, has an abandoned multi-million naira 50-room complex in the town.

The contract for the structure, which is built in a circular form, was said to have been awarded to an indigene of the town few years back.

Sources disclosed that T.B Joshua gave the contractor some amount of money to start the project, but that the project had to be abandoned, when the hugely bearded cleric stopped giving money to the contractor, who sources say had even spent his personal money on the project.

First Weekly gathered that T.B Joshua hardly visits the town and that when he does, it is to make one trouble or the other. According to our source, the man of God is leading some aggrieved people of the town, who are not in support of the installation of Oba Yisa Olanipekun, Zaki of Arigidi, as the traditional ruler of the town.

It was dependably gathered that the 50-room mansion has become home to reptiles and other kinds of animals and that it has become an eyesore in a town begging for more development.

“T.B Joshua has not been forthcoming to the people of the town. He may be popular in Lagos, but nobody reckons with him in his hometown. He has not been helping the people of the town despite the fact that he is seen as a philanthropist in Lagos. The people of Arigidi-Akoko are not feeling his impact and even if you ask some people, they will tell you they don't know who T. B Joshua is, it is that bad,” our source added.

  A source disclosed that the man of God, who grew up in the town, has not given back to his roots, adding that the contractor, who handled the project, has not been able to recoup his personal money spent on the project from T. B Joshua.

The imposing structure, sources maintained, has been a source of worry to the residents of the town, who are fed with tales of how 'Joshua spends money in Lagos, mentors several Europeans and Americans and feed the poor almost on a daily basis.'

In the words of an indigene of the town, 'Joshua is living a fake life, if he is rich, let him come and complete the building and spend his money for his people, most of whom are peasant farmers, artisans and poor traders.

August 02, 2011