Senior Pastor of House on the Rock Church, Paul Adefarasin, has drawn widespread reactions after stating during a sermon that Nigeria was not divinely established but rather a product of British colonial interests.
Addressing his congregation, Adefarasin argued that the country was structured to benefit Britain economically rather than fulfill any divine plan.
“I don’t believe Nigeria was created by God. This nation was created for the business of the British purse so they wouldn’t have to bear the bill for the less prosperous parts of the region,” he said.
He added that Nigeria’s name was coined by the girlfriend of a British official, not derived from indigenous roots, while Lord Lugard and other colonial administrators finalized the country’s amalgamation.
According to Adefarasin, Nigeria’s supposed founding fathers—Obafemi Awolowo, Tafawa Balewa, Ahmadu Bello, and Nnamdi Azikiwe—were not its true originators, insisting the nation was actually designed by “some men from Whitehall” in Britain.
The preacher lamented Nigeria’s economic decline, stating that the country should have become “the factory of Africa” but instead remains a dumping ground for second-hand goods.
Calling for urgent reforms in technical education, Adefarasin urged the government to equip citizens with skills for innovation and manufacturing, citing China as an example of industrial transformation.
“We have people poorer than their laborers. Nigeria must rise to become the factory of the world. But it will take men of justice and equity who devote themselves to nation-building,” he charged.
