Celestial Church in Turmoil After N5 Million Donation Sparks Leadership Crisis

A leadership crisis has rocked the Celestial Church of Christ, Acts of Apostle Parish in Ketu, Alapere, Lagos, following a controversial N5million donation. Tensions escalated during last Sunday’s service when Muyiwa Oluponna, who claims to be the son of the church’s founder, disrupted the service to assert himself as the rightful parish shepherd.

Oluponna reportedly seized the microphone from the acting shepherd, Adetayo Adetola, during his sermon, claiming an exclusive right to deliver sermons on the second Sunday of every month. He also declared himself the rightful leader of the church, leading to a heated argument that disrupted the service. A video of the incident went viral, showing Oluponna and several church members in a confrontation, which caused chaos within the congregation.

Reports indicate that the church was temporarily shut down for 40 days following the leadership dispute involving Oluponna, who is related to the church’s founder. A task force led by Akinbode Adjovi enforced the closure to prevent further unrest.

Adetola, who was in charge of the service on the day of the incident, explained that the dispute began when Oluponna interrupted the service to claim ownership of a N5million donation intended for church renovations and the construction of a clergy house. Adetola allowed Oluponna to speak out of respect for his family connection to the church founder, but the situation escalated when Oluponna claimed the funds belonged to his family, asserting that the church was family property. He also demanded to be made the parish shepherd and to preach every second Sunday.

As tensions grew, Adetola and other church members resisted Oluponna’s attempts to take control of the service. Parish shepherd Emmanuel Iperepolu accused Oluponna of making repeated threats and exhibiting confrontational behavior before the incident. Iperepolu stated that Oluponna had been coming to the church to harass him and others, demanding the N5million donation for his family and insisting the church belonged to them.

The matter has been reported to both church authorities and the police. Kayode Ajala, the church’s Head of Media and Publicity, confirmed the temporary closure, citing safety concerns and the need for order. “The church is a house of God, but when things escalate and lives are at risk, intervention becomes necessary. We shut down the church to prevent violence while investigations and conflict resolution are ongoing,” Ajala said.

Oluponna declined to comment on whether the donation was the root cause of the crisis, stating only that the matter was between his family and the church.