The lawyer representing Nigeria-born Pastor Tobi Adegboyega, founder of the Salvation Proclaimers Anointed Church (SPAC Nation), has denied reports claiming his client faces deportation from the United Kingdom.
The reports surfaced following allegations that Pastor Adegboyega, known for his opulent lifestyle, lost an appeal against deportation. Media outlets claimed that a UK immigration tribunal had ruled that the 44-year-old pastor, who overstayed his visitor visa in 2005, should be deported to Nigeria.
Punch Metro recalls that SPAC Nation, which gained prominence in the UK, was shut down by the British government in 2022 due to allegations of financial mismanagement and lack of transparency. A statement from the UK government at the time confirmed the church was “wound up in the public interest in the High Court on 9 June 2022 before Judge Burton.”
However, Adegboyega’s UK-based Nigerian lawyer, Dele Olawanle, refuted the deportation claims in a statement released on Wednesday morning, asserting his client is not facing removal from the UK.
“The newspaper that carried the news was ignorant,” Olawanle said. “I have acted for him as a lawyer on a personal basis and for the ministry. He is not facing deportation from the UK. That is elementary immigration law for journalists. Deportation is for criminals. He is not.”
Olawanle suggested that much of the opposition against Adegboyega stems from the African community, including rival pastors. He emphasized that despite legal and institutional challenges faced by SPAC Nation, Adegboyega himself has not been convicted of any crime.
“Even though the courts and the charity commission had issues with SPAC Nation, he was not personally found guilty of any wrongdoing,” Olawanle stated. “Tobi has lived in the UK for at least 20 years without a criminal conviction. He has contributed significantly to the British community. He has faced many challenges, but he is a winner.”
Criticizing what he described as sensational reporting and community animosity, Olawanle added, “Many of his adversaries are from the African community. Sensationalism is an act of idiocy. It is not worth the paper it was written on. I read some comments this morning and wondered why people are so quick to make ignorant comments without facts. I wondered why there is joy in seeing people go down, including so-called pastors. Society has a big problem, as we cannot handle people who are different and want them to go down. We love people who act sheepishly with zombie traits.”
Olawanle concluded by reiterating the falsehood of the deportation claims and stating that he would not comment further on the matter. “As his lawyer, I wrote during the High Court decisions on SPAC Nation a few years ago. I have said that this latest news on deportation is false, and I will make no further comments on this deportation matter privately or officially,” he said.
Adegboyega’s church attracted public scrutiny in late 2019 after following allegations by former church members who claimed they had been financially exploited by senior church personnel.
The UK govt also revealed that Adegboyega claimed SPAC Nation had over 2,000 members and 200 ordained ministers and pastors “but failed to provide any supporting information.
“Further enquiries found that SPAC Nation either failed to comply or only partially complied with statutory requirements, including providing data to support claimed donations, and accounting records in support of £1.87 million of expenditure.”
“The company’s financial statements in the two years to 31 December 2019 set out £610,000 of rent expenditure. However, the company did not have a single base of its own and would hire venues across London to hold services, at significant expense.”
“Salvation Proclaimer Ministries Limited was wound up after the court concluded the company operated with a lack of transparency, filed suspicious or incorrect accounts, and was insolvent at the time of the hearing.
“It was also recognised that the company provided inconsistent information to the Insolvency Service and Charity Commission, and failed to deliver adequate accounting records.”
