RE: CHOLERA OUTBREAK AT C.C.C. APATA-IYE PARISH, IBADAN…Professor Temitope Jaiyeola Cautions Naysayers!

The response below, crafted by a well-meaning member of our great Church, the respected Professor Temitope Jaiyeola, of the Mathematics Department of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, would suffice as MY response to the naysayer that is so desperate to push the narrative that “Ajala Releases False Information About C.C.C. Apata-Iye.”

False Information indeed! When the Oyo State Government itself has issued a statement confirming the outbreak of a cholera epidemic in the area where the C.C.C. parish in question is located.

Professor Temitope Jaiyeola, though not a professional Journalist, has established, with this apt response that, we truly need to call to question the credentials of some of the charlatans, that have brazenly infiltrated the noble pen-pushing profession.

Thanks, my dear Prof. You nailed it! I have nothing more to say or add. Let’s enjoy Professor Temitope Jaiyeola’s masterstroke below:

Halleluyah Editor,

I just had a phone conversation with Evangelist Korede Ogunmola this morning on what actually happened as regards the Cholera epidemic at the locality of the C.C.C. parish of which he is the Chairman of the Parochial Committee and its connection to feast (Ipese).

Based on the information I was able to gather from him, the Nigerian news papers’ linking the death of the five and other fifty hospitalised victims solely to the Ipese at the church was very unfair. It was very clear that they didn’t do due diligence to carry out an on- the-spot assessment at the church and community.

If it was the Ipese that actually killed those five people, then I am very sure that the Police would have invited the Shepherd for questioning and probably shut down the parish for investigation and possible prosecution.

Accorcing to detailed information, there had been a Cholera outbreak in the locality before the date the feast (Ipese) took place. Most victims (who were not even church members) were rushed to about three private hospitals in that locality.

Unfortunately, the treatments they received were not adequate enough. In fact, the private hospitals failed to diagnose that it was Cholera and the possibility of an epidemic, thereby failing to quickly alert the State Government of a matter that required extreme urgency.⁷

Fast forward to the day in which Ipese was taken:

1. Some members of the parish who lived outside the church locality ate from the Ipese but had no negative experience.
2. Some other church members who lived in the locality of the church had negative experiences after eating the Ipese and were rushed to private hospitals. Despite receiving treatment from these hospitals, their health conditions worsened.
3. There was a case of a little girl who didn’t live in the church locality, did not eat of the Ipese but started manifesting the symptoms of Cholera. She was also rushed to a private hospital.

When the Parochial Committee of the Church received the reports in 1 to 3, they swung into action. After the girl in 3 got back from the hospital, her condition wasn’t improving.

This prompted the Parochial Committee to quickly contact State Government officials in the Health Ministry of the happening and they were advised to transfer all victims in 2 and 3 to the Goverment facility at Olodo for proper medical attention.

Apparently, the Government wasn’t officially informed of the epidemic before the Ipese day. And the Parochial Committee wasn’t well informed of it as well. Else, they wouldn’t have allowed any food consumption on that service day.

The Police and D.S.S. have visited the Church and community with all these accounts presented to them.The Police instructed the Church to refer journalists to them for proper official accounts in case they come around.

The five people who died were made up of elderly ones and young ones of category 2. Due to the poor medical attention at the private hospitals, we lost them. May their souls rest in peace.

It is clear that the deaths were not due to food poisoning through Ipese consumption as it was falsely claimed by those newspapers and I think this was actually the wrong assertion which Superior Evangelist Kayode Ajala, the C.C.C, Media and Publicity arrowhead was trying trying to correct.

Although, he did not mention in the circular that five members of the parish who lived in the community died. I guess he did that for the image of the church, in order for people not to tag C.C.C. as using members for rituals with the aid of Ipese.

My advise to Celestial Prerogative is that when it comes to matters of our church that are associated with the society (just like this one), we should do very detailed investigation and be wary of contradicting official releases even when it seems not all information have been released.

Whoever reads your article without the above details I have given could think that C.C.C. used those 5 members for rituals under the cover of Ipese.

As for internal C.C.C. matters and its associated politics, you may take things up through constructive criticism. But for a matter like this, which concerns lives and the image of church before the whole world, we should apply some wisdom in order not to end up shooting ourselves in the foot.

I am still trying to contact church members in Tribune and Punch on the incomprehensive and incomplete published news.

Thank you.

Professor Temitope Jaiyeola.

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