The first time I heard the name Odumeje, a video clip of him was trending on the internet. The clip got me curious for two reasons. One, it was in what appeared to be a club and Odumeje was singing and hailing Zubby Michael “Eze Ndiara” and Zubby was dancing and spreading naira notes. It was a curious sight – a pastor in a club, singing a song that glorifies man, and abetting a show of lavishness (insert vanity if you like).
Looking at this closely, even with a judgemental Christian eye, none of these is technically a sin. Now, close your eyes and imagine Bishop Oyedepo in a club singing the praises of Jide Kosoko who spreads naira notes about. It is unimaginable with any normal man of God. Inappropriate might be the word. I began to pay more attention to the name Odumeje and as these things happen, a couple of other clips where he did things continually hit my desk – things that would shock anyone used to normal men of God.
The conclusion for anyone getting to know the prophet is immediate, Odumeje in a class of his own. Many would, and boldly so, call him a fake man of God. I believe this tag is lazy at best. Odumeje is unusual. You can be unusual and still be genuine, true to your calling. And no, this post is not to answer the question on his veracity, we would leave that for people who see in the spirit. We see only as humans do and we analyze with the objectivity that is closer to what you would see in the classroom than in a gathering of church deacons and deaconesses, than in a newspapers vendor’s stand.
First, we would take a look at his roots and answer the question of who he is and what his upbringing looks like.
Age, place of birth, and real name
Odumeje’s real name (or full name since Odumeje is one of his given names) is Prophet Chukwuemeka Odumeje Ohanaemere. He was born in Orsu Ihete Ukwa, in Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State, to Mr. and Mrs. Pius Ohanaemere. He was born in September 9th, 1978.
Odumeje is number three in a family of six kids. He grew up in Onitsha and attended primary up to secondary school in Fegge area of Onitsha. His mother was a petty trader at the popular Upper Iweka Road. The family were Catholics and they attended Sacred Heart Parish, Odoakpu, Onitsha where Odumeje was a devout member. It is said that his mother had always dreamed that he would become a great prophet someday.
When Odumeje finished secondary school, finances impeded his furthering his education. He settled for apprenticeship in leather business which he gave up when the calling become strong on him. On September 10, 2000, he held what would be the first service of his new church.
He is today the founder, pastor, prophet, the president, lion, and entertainer-in-chief of Mountain of Holy Ghost Intervention and Deliverance Ministry inc., mostly shortened as the Land of Freedom.
Odumeje is married with five kids.
Odumeje’s Style
Odumeje has a few ways he runs his ministry and sells his person to the public. He uses three tools, theatrics, identification with the street, and an unabashed embrace of secular celebrities. His goal is simple, to remain in the news and revel in all the attention he can attract.
Association with secular celebrities
Every Igbo celebrity who lives or does business in the Awka-Onitsha-Enugu axis has been associated with Odumeje, or Odumeje has associated with them. Flavour, Phyno, Zubby Michael, Destiny Etiko, Native Doctor, Onyema Tochukwu, all. Even those outside this axis such as Peter Okoye of P’square fame, Davido, have been courted by him.
This courting was demonstrated on screen in his attempt to meet and greet the governor of Kano State, Ganduje and was stopped and waved away by the governor’s security detail.
It seems Odumeje is attracted to money, fame, and power, no matter the sources of these. Ganduje was caught on tape receiving dollars and pocketing them into his agbada in what looks like bribes from contracts he awarded. Ganduje is seriously accused of stealing his reelection which was inconclusive and later marred with violence, ballot box snatching and stuffing. Ganduje is a Muslim and there is nothing to indicate that he was interested in the gospel of Christ nor of giving the man of God a listening ear. But Odumeje just had to approach because Ganduje is a governor.
The celebrities he is known or seen with are people in the entertainment industry (same as Odumeje who has music tracks to his name) or his “members”, so he should associate with them. He has even done music with Flavour. And whatever you think about their symbolism in pop culture, as the projectors of vanity, sexuality, and wealth (clean and not so clean wealth) glorification, Jesus of Nazareth himself had friends among tax collectors and prostitutes.
The only problem can be found in the words of Apostle Paul of Tarsus who, writing to the Corinthians the second time (6:14), urged, “Don’t be unequally yoked with unbelievers.”
Odumeje doesn’t seem to take this counsel literally, or he takes it literary and missed the point in his carefree exuberance.
Identification with the street
Street as a slang word means so many things in Nigeria. It is usually about the context it was used. Street could mean you relate with the common man on the street; street could mean you use the common slangs of a given locality; street could mean you are into entertainment the local way; street could also mean that you are into hustling (which can mean legally or trying to rope a white lady into a romantic web that would only make you smile as much as her account balance bleeds). Etc.
Nigerians wonder if Odumeje is a cultist
Odumeje identifies with street and this ticks many of the boxes above (don’t shudder – or shudder all you want). His use of Igbo slangs which is sometimes a corruption or a remix of Igbo idioms, which sometimes begins with or end with English or have an English word thrust in there, his deliberate (or not) massacre of the English language, and his use of unknown words such as “Indaboski bahoshe” have made him a hit with the street and the random seeker of entertainment on Social Media.
Does this glorify God? It may matter to an average man of God how his words are being interpreted and what it makes people think of his ministry. But it may not matter to Odumeje as it could be lost in his street exuberance
Theatrics
Some of the things Odumeje does in his church would make a template for a long-lasting soap opera. He would jump sky-high, he would kick at the air, and would punch members and do WWE Smackdown-like moves on them; he plenty times allowed his alter to be covered with naira notes poured out by his celebrity-friends. He once claimed to have raised the dead in church, something he showed “live” for all to see.
With Odumeje, you can never tell what you would be getting in his church. One thing, however, is promised you – you would be entertained; there would never be a dull minute with him during service.
And, of course, this theatre, mostly of the absurd, is made into clips and shared endlessly on Social Media. This keeps everyone talking about the man of God, this makes him the centre of the dicourse. This would open up the question, who takes the glory?
Christianity is measured with how much one projects Jesus Christ. John the Baptist gave what has become the rallying cry of humility while working on God’s vineyard when he described his relationship with Jesus Christ thus, “He must increase; I must decrease.”
In the case of Odumeje, in the bottomless haystack of his drama and theatrics, who is increasing and who is decreasing? We are talking about Odumeje right now so he seems to be the one increasing in fame and fortune while working for God; you can’t hear the man Odumeje and think of Jesus. This is problematic and may be obvious to us. This may be lost to Odumeje’s theatric exubrance.
To conclude this, we would answer one question that has been asked whenever the name Odumeje pops up online: Is Odumeje a real pastor? The answer, we think, is yes – Odumeje is a real pastor who has unusual approach to the kingdom of God and what it represents and who, sometimes, make mistakes which are blown out of proportion because he is always in the public and out of proportion himself.
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