Nigeria: Why homophobic pastors should remain outside politics
By
‘Tofe Ayeni
Reserved for subscribers
Posted on
July 27, 2021 20:11
In Africa’s most populous nation, a differing of opinions is a given. But when it comes views on homosexuality and queerness in the country, those of the elite take precedence. The colonial legacy in Nigeria has left the country, like many others, with a bias against non-heterosexual relations. And this has in turn been eaten up and spat out by the major religious institutions in the country.
On 12 April 2021, following an inquiry from openDemocracy, YouTube shut down the channel of late Pastor TB Joshua – one of the 20 richest preachers in the world at the time of his passing on 5 June.
The channel, which had over 1.8 million subscribers, had posted at least seven clips between 2016 and 2020 showing the pastor, born Temitope Balogun Joshua, engaging in violent exorcisms to ‘cure’ gay