THE Founding Pastor of the Mountain of Liberation and Miracle Ministry, Pastor Chris Okafor, has decried the rate of cyber-bullying in Nigeria, urging the Federal Government to regulate the country’s cyberspace.
Okafor, at a news conference on Thursday, January 29, in Lagos, expressed displeasure with most bloggers and online influencers in Nigeria, saying: “It is so sad that most of the so-called influencers we have often connived with people to come up with fabulous lies to attract traffic to their blogs.
“Many Nigerians have suffered and are still suffering from the lies of bloggers and most often, they get away with it after destroying the image of their targets.
“Very few times, some of the influencers were arrested and dragged to court, but 90 per cent of them often go free for far-fetched lies against people.
“Nigeria must find a way to safeguard its Internet space, especially to ensure that innocent citizens do not get shattered over lies, demeaning their image.”
The televangelist stressed the need for the National Assembly to come up with a legislation that would not only regulate the country’s Internet, but also ensure offenders are punished as deterrent to others.
Recalling his recent ordeal, Okafor lamented that majority of bloggers and some Nigerians failed to ask the necessary questions on the allegation, charging the cyber Police to do more in tracing Internet offences and fishing out offenders.
He stated: “The same person who accused me of murder is the same person crying that I want to abandon her and marry someone else. How could she want to marry someone who allegedly killed her brother?.
“There is so much about the matter than meets the ordinary eye, and so many unanswered questions and glaring lies.
“The allegations were coming from a woman I never met. Then my ex-wife joined and came up with my allegedly trying to defile one of our daughters.
“The same ex-wife and daughter have gone to a popular blogger to ask that I pay for their school fees and upkeep abroad of about N80million. The same father trying to defile them? Which woman will do that.
“All these began after my plans to remarry was leaked by our wedding planner. All hell broke loose and everyone tries to cash in on it.
“In our divorce proceedings in 2014, which I instituted at an Ikeja court, the reasons on the document were infidelity, violence, lack of love, and the marriage was dissolved for irreconcilable differences.
“At no point during the proceedings did my ex-wife mention I was trying to defile our daughter. The court awarded me custody of our children and no one queried those allegations.
“If as a pastor I can survive these lies, what happens to an average Nigerian?”
The cleric reassured his church members and Nigerians that the truth would eventually unfold, adding that truth must prevail and offenders would not go unpunished, noting: “In the 55 years of my existence on earth, I have never been arrested for any crime or offence. It is so sad how far people can go to destroy.”
In November last year, Nollywood actress, Doris Ogala, accused Okafor of a long-term affair, breaking a promise to marry her, killing her brother and burying the head of a murdered unidentified person at his church altar located in Ojodu area of Lagos State.
Okafor lamented that while his media trial was going on, the most painful aspect was that the bloggers and influencers were all bullying him on an allegation without evidence or hearing from him.
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