– KOLAPO Ayobamidele, ABH Press
The general overseer of the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo has stepped down from his position as Senior Pastor of the church.
Fatoyinbo revealed this in a statement on his verified Instagram page on Monday morning, saying that he has decided to take “a leave of absence from the pulpit of the church”.
This decision appears to be the result of a public outcry on social media and protests following the rape accusation of the pastor by celebrity photographer, Busola Dakolo, who is also wife of popular Nigerian singer, Timi Dakolo. In a YouTube video published by YNaija which went viral on social media on Friday, Busola revealed, in an interview with Chude Jideonwo, how she was raped by the pastor 20 years ago at the age of 17. This led to a public outcry in which members of the church and other Nigerians asked the pastor to step down from his position pending the time the truth of the matter would be revealed.
Nigerians also stormed the Abuja and Lagos branches of COZA on Sunday in a protest, demanding the pastor to step down.
In his statement, Fatoyinbo stated that although it would break his heart to stay a day without doing ministry, he believes it is in the interest of the flock of Christ that issues concerning him do not become a distraction to their worship of the Lord.
Read his statement below:
