Moses Oyeleke, a pastor with Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel), Maiduguri, Borno State, has regained his freedom, after six months in Boko Haram’s
Moses Oyeleke, a pastor with Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel), Maiduguri, Borno State, has regained his freedom, after six months in Boko Haram’s captivity. The pastor and a National Youth Service Corps member, Abraham Amuta, were abducted in May, 2019, while on their way to Chibok to distribute relief items to Internally Displaced Persons and evangelize.
Unfortunately, Abraham remains in captivity allegedly because the abductors said he is “stubborn” to them. After being released, Pastor Oyeleke headed to Winners Chapel to give praises to God. Narrating his horrific experience, in captivity, Oyeleke confirmed that his freedom was facilitated by the Borno State government Kalthum Foundation for Peace and Initiative for Peace Building (two NGOs).
Speaking with pressmen the office of Usman Kadafur, deputy governor of the state, the cleric said, “We were on our way to Chibok when they caught us and took us to Yale; from there, they took a detour and finally took us to Sambisa. It was the two of us, myself and my brother, who was not released. They have promised us that when they finish discussions, they’ll release them in December; himself and the elder sister of this girl I was released with.
“I am very happy today that we have been rescued because where we are coming from, we have come from a place of darkness to light; that is why my heart is filled with joy because I have seen my family, friends, and associates. I stayed peacefully with them for up to seven months. Many times they requested me to convert to Islam, their preachers preached to me a lot of times but you know when you have wisdom, you relate with people in a way that would not lead to quarrel.
“When they come to preach, I pay attention to everything they said and when they asked me questions about things that I know will cause problems if I respond, I always tell them I don’t know so that I don’t say things that would offend them.”