A Catholic priest of Nsukka Diocese, Reverend Father Paul Obayi, popularly known as Fr Okunerere has revealed that he wants to leave the Catholic church.
The priest who founded the Okunerere Adoration Ministry, Nsukka, Enugu State, accused his Bishop, Most Rev. Godfrey Onah of oppre§§ing him.
Speaking in a video on his Facebook page, he said, “The church is my vineyard, I love the church, I love my Nsukka (Catholic) church, I love the bishop, I love the priests, I love them, but they are oppre§§ing me.
I was looking for a land where I will conduct my adoration but couldn’t find. I rented a place behind Queens College Nsukka and started my adoration there. Bishop Onah chased me out of the place, saying I was causing noise and distracting the students of Queens.
The past governor of Enugu State, Gburugburu gave me this piece of land I’m staying in now. I told the Bishop that I have land and I took him there to see the land. When he came, he then said that the land is fine to be used to build the Marian Shrine. I told him it’s my adoration ministry I want to start here and not Marian Shrine. He said I shouldn’t talk about it again.
I give everything to the church, yet the church wants to strängl£ me. But it can’t happen!
I bought and installed the best transformer in the cathedral of Nsukka Diocese which they’re using till today.
The Bishop mandated me to build a museum where I would keep the deities I removed from villages. I spent N2.8 million to build the museum upstairs inside the cathedral and reported it to my bishop.
The only ‘thank you’ I got from my bishop was that he asked me ‘Where did I get the money to build it when he has banned the selling of olive oil’. Yet, I endured it.
At Obimo, I got land to build my adoration ministry. It’s a mountain. I spent more than N50m to level the place and create roads, then built a 30-room self-contained house there. The church collected it from me and I surrendered it. Kidn@ppErs are using that building today to keep their victims because the church isn’t using it till today after collecting it from me. The Bishop said he wants to use the place as Nsukka Diocesan Pilgrimage Centre.
The oppre§ gion is too much. Priests are avoiding coming to my adoration because if they see any priest in my adoration, during posting, they will post the priest in a faraway village beyond Adani in Uzo Uwani LGA.
I have been inviting the Bishop to my adoration but he refused to come, saying he doesn’t understand what we are doing here.
If Charismatics draft a programme and include my name as a guest priest when they take it to the Diocese for approval, the authorities will tear the programme on seeing my name there. They would ask the Charismatics why should they invite Fr Okunerere. For 10 years now, I have not attended any
charismatic programme because the church authorities won’t permit me.
Bishop Onah stopped me from going to London to preach, saying that I would go there to preach heresy. I asked him, before you became my bishop, I had attended 10 different programmes in London where I preached. Is it now you’re my bishop that I will preach heresy?
The church refused to give me land for my adoration, and the one given to me by the government, the church wants to collect it from me.
Since the church doesn’t want me again, I am leaving the Catholic Church any moment from now.”
