The Minister for Karamoja Affairs, Mr John Byabagambi, while representing Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda as the chief guest at the ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of School of Nursing at Bishop Stuart University, Ruharo Campus in Mbarara District on Wednesday attacked Pentecostal churches, comparing them with evil, urging that they are profit-oriented and exploitative.
Byabagambi said government should arrest church leaders exploiting their followers, the Daily Monitor reports.
“These churches are operating in an exploitative way. You have heard them say ‘bring a tenth of your wealth and we pray for you.’ Then they started selling rice, saying this is “holy rice” yet it is grown in Masindi and Kiryandongo,” the minister said, as quoted by the Daily Monitor.
Adding: “Then someone sells water, which we all know is from a spring or underground but you see people lining up with jerrycans. These are the exploitative churches I am talking about. They have diverted from the mission of preaching the gospel, now I can say they are preaching evil because if they can exploit God’s people, then I can compare them with evil.’’
His words are however not receiving warm reception as several born-again Christians critic the Minister.
“Sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong, If the Pentecostals themselves are not complaining, why feel so concerned, last time I was in Karamoja people were dying of hunger. In Kotido, in a whole village like Lubanya you can’t trace a single school(people are still ignorant like hell, not even a church here, mothers and children dying of preventable illnesses like malaria, you have to drive for two hours to access a shop. I wonder where all the govt funds 4 Karamoja go or the foreign aid. I guess its better off if you stick your nose on these issues.” One reader said.
“The Minister comments with feelings and hatred. He should have said some churches not generalizing. Even the so called traditional religions extort money from people by selling items in their churches expensively, they can sell a goat at 1 million for example. How is this different from this different from selling a kg of rice at 50k? How comes that when it done in traditional religion it’s called fundraising, but when Pentecostals do do it it is called exploiting the members, why can’t people take separate hatred and ignorance from National issues?” Added Another.
“What yardstick would be used to determine that it’s exploitation. Any funds given to a church is out of free will. Mainstream churches have done their fair part on exploitation for hundreds of years. Unless there is a complaint by a church goer, then there cannot be search thing as exploitation. Catholic church even used to charge people to continue prayers for some one to enter ‘pagatory’. Today they charge for baptism . Guess we start from there.” George Wodenga said.
Ronald Ogwang said: “I see no correlation between karamoja affairs and Pentecostal churches or even the ground breaking ceremony, our fellow citizens in Karamoja are starving to death, a matter of priority than the Pentecostal issue.”
As reported, the minister said traditional churches in Uganda were built on the spirit of developing human beings and their livelihood through construction of schools, hospitals and other humanitarian oriented projects, unlike the Pentecostal churches, which he said are profit-oriented and taking advantage of the poor.
Pastor Cyrus Tayebwa, the provincial overseer of Ankole National Fellowship of Born Again Pentecostal Churches told the Daily Monitor there are many people who claim to be Born Again yet in reality, they are witchdoctors who have modernised their shrines into churches.
“We don’t ask people for money to pray for them, if people are to give tithe they give it to Jesus.” He said.
male@ugchristiannews.com
