The founder of Adoration Ministry in Enugu state, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka is in the news again over comments he made about the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

Mbaka declared that Atiku will fail in his presidential bid, following former Governor Peter Obi’s refusal to publicly announce his donation to his ministry.

The priest, in a viral video, asked Obi several times to make his donation to his ministry public, but the PDP Vice-Presidential candidate said he will disclose what he will do privately.

The occasion was a Bazaar service which was organised by the Adoration Ministry on Sunday, December 2, 2018.

A Bazaar is held by most traditional churches to raise funds by auctioning items given by members during a harvest program.

God hates stinginess

In his response, Mbaka said “God hates stinginess. I am not telling you this, to make you happy. This is what will save your life. Otherwise you and Atiku will fail.”

According to The Cable, Mbaka also said “If there is a place they will coat words for you, it is not at Mbaka’s altar. You can save your political destiny or in 2019, you people will not even know how they did the election”.

Peter Obi, reputed to be very frugal with money, still did not bulge.

Continuing, Fr Mbaka wondered, “What will make my brother to come for bazaar and he won’t even break kola?”

“The way you and Atiku are moving will end in shame”.

“Let us continue our bazaar. You know since he [Atiku] is not supporting us, the ministry has been moving. If people start arguing like this, their downfall begins,” he warned.

Mbaka also told his followers that he will give a prophesy on the outcome of the 2019 election on December 31, 2018.

October prophesy

In October 2018, the priest revealed that Atiku will defeat President Buhari in the 2019 presidential election.

He however warned the PDP presidential candidate not to behave like Buhari when he gets to office. Also, in December 2017, Fr. Mbaka prayed for Atiku saying that he has what it takes to make Nigerians smile.

Nigerians react

But Nigerians on Twitter have criticized Mbaka for accepting a donation from the Kano state Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje who was recently accused of receiving kickbacks from contractors.

Ganduje, who also attended the Bazaar service on Sunday, made a secret donation to the ministry, according to Mbaka.

Buhari has abandoned me

The priest, while commenting on the Kano state Governor’s secret donation, accused Buhari of abandoning him.

He went ahead to list how he helped the President spiritually, claiming that his prophesy boosted the APC’s chances in 2015.

The priest also asked Ganduje to go back and tell Buhari to help his ministry or provide jobs for his followers who supported and stood by him during the elections.

But Senator Hope Uzodinma, the APC guber candidate in Imo state locked in a bitter battle with Gov. Rochas Okorocha, was watching all this development between Fr. Mbaka and Peter Obi from the left side of the alter were he stood. When Mbaka invited him speak, he was quick to collect the microphone and railed out what he claimed was Buhari’s promises for the ministry. First was to build a “first class hospital” for the ministry “to be started this month and completed in January next year” plus a N2 million gift to “break the kola nut”.

Mbaka himself only recently accused the President of playing ethnic, despotic politics and toying with the lives of Nigerians.

However, the PDP vice presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, later asked people to stop attacking Rev Ejike Mbaka over his prophecies.

Obi’s reaction came following Mbaka’s pronouncements on Sunday that both Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and President Muhammadu of the All Progressives Congress might not win the 2019 presidential election.

In a statement released by Obi’s media aide, Val Obienyem, the former governor of Anambra State said he did not feel bad about the priest’s pronouncement.

Obi maintained that in every situation, there would be something positive to learn from it, adding that Mbaka had always spoken from the “higher perspective of wisdom.”

The PDP vice presidential candidate implored the laity to always remember their priests in prayers, adding that it was wrong for priests to be attacked based on what they said on the pulpits.

He said, “Please let us leave Fr. Mbaka alone; our duty to him is prayers for God to lead him aright.

“While one may disagree with him, we should always acknowledge that he speaks and acts from the higher perspective of wisdom.”

Obi who noted that he had a reverend sister and a reverend father as elder and younger siblings respectively, added, “I have full respect for men of God and will always remember them in my prayers. When they go wrong as humans, subject to human frailties, ours is not to castigate them, but to pray to God to lead them aright.”

Describing  donations to churches as an “appreciation of God’s love and benevolence to us, Obi said, “they  attract more rewards when done secretly.”