Lagos Retiree Accuses Church Of Neglect After Apartment Demolition

The Redeemed Evangelical Mission has been accused of neglect for allegedly failing to fulfill its promise to renovate a three-bedroom apartment at 5 Mobil Road, Satellite Town, Lagos State, owned by 61-year-old retiree Olanike Okome.

The church had allegedly demolished the apartment’s walls to convert it into a hall for religious services after renting it in November 2016.

According to PUNCH Metro, at the time, it was learnt that the church popularly known as TREM promised Okome to address the damage before vacating the apartment.

Following a PUNCH Metro publication on August 12, 2024, which highlighted the church’s alleged failure to restore the apartment to its original state and settle its outstanding rent, Okome expressed frustration on Saturday that none of the promises had been fulfilled, despite an agreement reached with its pastors on August 17, 2024.

In another interview on Tuesday, Okome revealed that the church had urged her and her husband to refrain from escalating the matter further in the media, assuring them that the issue would be resolved within a specified timeframe.

After realising that the church had failed to honour its promise yet again, Okome appealed to well-meaning Nigerians for assistance.

Seeking the intervention of relevant authorities, she said, “I want them to repair the house and pay the rent they owe me. My apartment was a three-bedroom house, but they tore down all the walls and converted it into a church hall.

“After your (PUNCH Metro’s) report in August, the pastors met with me on August 17 and promised to resolve the issue. They only did some partitioning but have done nothing else since then.

“They paid me six months’ rent out of a year and promised to restore the apartment to its original condition within three months. They pay N800,000 annually and were supposed to vacate the apartment in November 2023.”

Okome’s husband, Paul, told PUNCH Metro during a separate telephone interview on Tuesday that the church had been dragging its feet on completing the restoration of the apartment, which had been demolished.

“We arranged a meeting that was not attended, but the agent and church representatives met instead. Since no consensus was reached, we reconvened in August with a mediator from the church’s headquarters.

“We agreed that the church would pay six months’ rent on the condition that the property would be restored and handed over by November 17, 2024 (three months). If they failed to meet this deadline, the remaining rent balance would have to be paid.

“The rent for the first half-year was transferred immediately, yet the house is still in their possession. The rehabilitation is far from complete, and instead of progress, we are being given excuses and pushed back and forth,” Paul said.

In response to the accusation, one of the church’s pastors, known simply as Chris, told PUNCH Metro in a separate interview on November 30, 2024, that the church had fulfilled part of its promises.

“What she’s doing is emotional blackmail. I don’t understand why she’s sharing my number with everyone. We’ve already had discussions with her and her agent, and the agent is handling the work. The agent has seen all the progress we’ve made on the building so far.

“What was the condition of the apartment when we rented it years ago? We have made improvements to the building for her. She has escalated the issue to our church’s headquarters, and they have already intervened. Every time she calls, it’s nothing but insults. We spoke to her this morning.”