Retirements: “Mind Your Business, Everything Works Here” – Oyedepo Tells Critics of Leadership Changes

In response to recent criticism surrounding the retirement of senior church leaders, Bishop David Oyedepo, the founder of Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel), has called for restraint from critics, urging them to respect the church’s leadership decisions.

Social media reactions emerged last week following the announcement that two prominent figures in the church, Bishops Thomas Aremu and David Abioye, would be stepping down after decades of service—Aremu after three and Abioye after four decades. Their retirements align with the church’s internal policies, as outlined in “The Mandate,” the operational guideline that functions as the church’s constitution.

During a sermon at Bishop Aremu’s valedictory service at Winners Chapel in Orita Bashorun on Tuesday, Oyedepo emphasized that the church operates on divine principles and urged critics to focus on their own affairs.

He pointed out that the church’s Administrative Policy, originally set in 1998, was updated in 2001, and “The Mandate” of 2012 was revised again in 2024. Under this updated framework, the retirement age has been adjusted from 60 to 55, while the founder, Oyedepo, retains a lifetime leadership role. Future church leaders will be subject to one or two seven-year terms, subject to approval by the Board of Trustees.

Addressing those who might wish ill for the ministry, Oyedepo issued a stern warning, saying, “My advice to commentators is to study to be quiet and mind your business. It is wisdom to learn what is working and find out what makes it work. Everything works here.”

He also urged Bishop Aremu to remain spiritually steadfast and warned against taking a “spiritual break,” which he said could be dangerous.

Earlier in the service, Bishop Aremu expressed his commitment to the church, affirming that he had no plans to establish his own ministry after retirement. “I don’t have a church, and I cannot have a church because God has not infused me with the capacity to do so. This is my church,” Aremu said.

Aremu, a former accountant who transitioned into full-time ministry, is the last surviving bishop among the seven consecrated at the Garden of Faith in Kaduna in 1999.

Meanwhile, the retirement ceremony for Bishop David Abioye is scheduled to take place on Friday, October 18, 2024, at Winners Chapel in Durumi, Abuja.