A Nigerian pastor who was at the centre of controversy when a church building collapsed with the death of 116 people is planning to move to Israel.
Nigerian media reports that Pastor Joshua Temitope Balogun, commonly known as TB Joshua, will move and settle in the Middle East.
TB Joshua is being sued by two South African children whose father died in the collapse of a guesthouse in 2014. Synagogue Church of All Nations, Joshua's church, is also facing charges for criminal negligence. The six-storey guesthouse that collapsed did not have planning permission.
TB Joshua has himself not been charged but some of those responsible for the building face criminal charges, according to the BBC.
He has a very popular YouTube channel, TV network, social media presence and more. Yet he is a deeply controversial figure with many accusations against him.
Now, he is thought to be moving to Israel, being quoted as saying, 'This is where my Father in Heaven came from. It's non-negotiable.'
His official Facebook page showed pictures of him with 'the Mayor of Jordan Valley, Idan Grinbaum.' (Greenbaum is actually head of the Emek HaYarden Regional Council).
The TV evangelist posted more pictures with an enigmatic quote which read, 'Many of you don't know why I have this passion – I want to pray for people; I want to see people healed and delivered. I derive joy seeing people free, seeing people laugh! I am just telling you the secret.'
One Nigerian news site reported a government minister saying, 'That will be very unfortunate in the sense that if he does move out, it will affect our tourism in Nigeria. Pastor Joshua is an important person, he must bear with us.'
