A member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Timi Frank, has appealed to Prophet T.B Joshua to rescind his decision to locate his church to Israel.
Frank made the appeal in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.
He said that Joshua’s prayers were needed more now, considering the challenges confronting the country.
“I am making this appeal bearing in mind millions of people who daily benefit from welfare programmes of this man of God, not only in Nigeria but in Africa,’’ Frank said.
He also called on government at all levels, their agencies and peace-loving religious leaders across the country to prevail on the prophet not to abandon the country.
He maintained that Joshua’s presence in Nigeria went beyond religion, adding that it had positive economic impact on the lives of Nigerians and the country.
The politician said that statistics from the Nigerian Immigration Service revealed that six out of every 10 travellers to Nigeria visited the country because of T.B Joshua’s ministry, The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN).
According to him, such religious tourism into the country impacts positively on local businesses.
Frank urged the prophet to consider all what he termed persecution to what the Lord Jesus Christ paid to save humanity.
“Prophet Joshua should know that God did not make mistake to create him a Nigerian and an African with a big assignment.
“I believe that his God will vindicate him of whatever persecution that might come his way,’’ he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Joshua declared his intension to relocate to Israel in his address on sermon on Sunday, on his return from the Holy Land.
He had told his followers that while in the Holy Land, he held meetings with Mayors of Jerusalem, Tiberias and the Jordan Valley.
He said that the Mayors offered land and facilities in an area around the biblical site of the Sea of Galilee for him to organise meetings for international pilgrims. (NAN)