For supporting, gay same-sex marriage
The fiery clergy fears for his safety and ministry after cyberbullying and several calls to his mobile phone vowing to kill him.
Pastor Idowu Bankole, a clergy, and digital media expert could be in imminent danger, as he continues to receive several insults, coupled with death threats..
Celebrity endorsements can be a powerful tool to reach millions, even if the reactions are mixed. This is the situation faced by Pastor Idowu Bankole, Nigeria’s clergy, who in 2022, became the first black Pastor in Nigeria to publicly endorse gay, same-sex marriage.
Pastor Idowu Bankole via his verified handle had tweeted that;
“We are all equal before the eyes of God; no discrimination, no hate. Let us learn to respect other people’s choices and the world will be at peace. God bless America, God protect President Biden and I hope others will follow the same path to knock hate out of our world #LGBTQ.
Over 100 reactions, including aggressive replies from around the world, met the aforementioned tweet, along with threats not only to him but also directed to his ministry including calls from unknown numbers vowing to hunt him down and kill him in cold blood.
In the same vein, Maiipata also replied
“I wonder how these worlds came from a pastor”
u are hell bound I promise you.
However, HobbJersey seems to side with the clergy
“What has he said wrong…? He only asked that we love regardless. Even Christ preached that we love others.
The escalating situation has prompted the clergy to ask for protection from the Nigerian security agencies wich he has been denied, as Bankole now fears for his safety and that of his immediate environment.
On many fora and community gatherings he has supported gays, and same-sex marriage and has urged his followers to rather show love than discriminate, hate and resort to violence.
When contacted, the Nigeria police confirmed the incident and have begun an investigation into the matter.
Recently Nigerian Legislators jettisoned a same-sex marriage bill further showing the country’s leadership is against people making their independent choices.
Recall that, just last year soldiers from the Ikeja Cantonment raided Idowu Bankole’s home shooting sporadically in the air but he managed to escape by a whisker. on many occasions, he has survived assassination attempts, kidnap and robbery.
Pastor Idowu Bankole relocated from the Northern part of Nigeria to preach the gospel of the love of christ after Bandit leader, Bello Turji Kachalla ( listen) popularly known as Turji and other northern Muslim clerics declared fatwah on him.
We are all equal before the eyes of God; no discrimination, no hate. Let us learn to respect other people's choices and the world will be at peace. God bless America, God protect President Biden and I hope others will follow the same path to knock hate out of our world #LGBTQ ?️?
— Pastor Idowu Bankole (@Olubankoleidowu) December 14, 2022
