he pastor was called to present evidence
that supported his claim that the church
was attacked by terrorists flying over the
building, something experts have ruled
out.
The pastor was also facingthat supported his claim that the church
was attacked by terrorists flying over the
building, something experts have ruled
out.
allegations that members of his church
thwarted emergency rescue operations
the day of the tragedy.
“The first three days (after the collapse)
were marred by the so-called church
sympathizers and the crowd,” said the
head of the Lagos State Emergency
Management Agency, Femi Oke-
Osanyintolu, during the inquest. “By the
time we attained momentum after 96
hours a lot of things had gone bad.”
“The crowd impeded our operation. They
did not allow our personnel and
equipment to come in. They frustrated the
emergency workers at the scene,” he
furthered. "Instead of allowing trained
rescue workers with specialist equipment
to search for survivors, only church
members and volunteers were allowed to
pick through the rubble," he said.
Oke-Osanyintolu additionally claimed that
SCOAN staff were not forthcoming with
details that would aid an effective
investigation. “We were not allowed to do
documentation. Photographs of the
incident were not allowed," he said. "We
asked for the manifest to know the
number and identities of the people in the
building, we were not given. We asked for
the building plan, we were not given.”
The coroner, Oyetade Komolafe, said last
week that Joshua would face arrest if he
dismissed the inquest, but Joshua's
lawyers are claiming that he, as well as
the building's contractors, never received
summons to appear.
“We don’t want the impression to be
created that The Prophet is avoiding the
court," Olalekan Ojo, Joshua's lawyer,
explained. "The Man of God has not been
personally served the witness summons.
He was unavoidably absent when the
sheriff went for the service."
Despite this, the lawyer did not accept the
summons on his client's behalf.
Vanguard Nigeria reports that inspections
indicated that the buildings were
structurally defective, bearing more than
they were designed to.
“We want Prophet Joshua to know that
the court is not persecuting anybody but
(trying) to find the truth. He should
come," the coroner said.
“As a prophet of God that he claims to be,
he must not do anything that will make
him to be at variance with the law.”
