TB Joshua Archives - Jean-Jacques Cornish

SA sends disaster management team to Nigeria after church collapse

Jean-Jacques Cornish — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 22:00:00 +0000

South Africa’s sending an advance team of disaster management personnel to Lagos following the deaths of 67 of its nationals in the rubble of a church that collapsed in the Nigerian commercial capital.

Pretoria’s foreign affairs chief says an inter-departmental team has been put together to coordinate all government activities relating to the calamity.

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana Mashebane was speaking nearly a day after President Jacob Zuma announced the deaths of 67 compatriots in the Lagos building collapse.

Significantly, her statement doesn’t mention cooperation by the Synagogue Church of All Nations headed by TB Joshua or the Nigerian government.

Officials in both her department and the presidency say the Nigerian authorities are being less than forthcoming.

At least five South African tour groups were in the building when it collapsed last Friday.

Nkoana Mashebane says her government’s treating the matter with the utmost urgency.

It understands fully the pain and anguish of affected families.

The South African High Commission in the capital, Abuja, has seconded staff to Lagos to provide assistance to the Consul-General.

She’s provided a hotline for families and friends of possible victims.

Two South African rescue charities skilled at working international disasters say they’re waiting for the green light from Nigeria to send teams to Lagos.

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No official information about miracle worker’s collapsed church

Jean-Jacques Cornish — Tue, 16 Sep 2014 22:00:00 +0000

Nigerian rescue authorities are frustrated by the lack of information from the self-styled miracle worker who’s church in Lagos collapsed last Friday killing at least 67 South Africans.
Preacher TB Joshua initially said only a few people were injured when the building came down. The official death toll is still less than the number given by President Jacob Zuma last night.

TB Joshua, who was hosting at least five South African tour grounds at the Synagogue Church of All Nations in Lagos, blames a low flying aircraft from bringing down the building.
Rescuers attribute the collapse to shoddy construction work.
Nigerian authorities have been circumspect on the disaster – indicating perhaps the popularity that the tele-evangelist enjoys both domestically and internationally.

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Rescuers dig carefully at collapsed Lagos Church

Jean-Jacques Cornish — Tue, 16 Sep 2014 22:00:00 +0000

Rescuers continue carefully to dig through the rubble of church building collapse in Nigeria’s commercial capital of Lagos – afraid that their delving might cause more damage and endanger anyone still alive.
At least 67 South Africans are among the dead. Twelve dozen survivors have been pulled alive from the ruins.
Ends intro
Mystery still surrounds the collapse,of the Synagogue Church of All Nations in the Ikoton district of Lagos.
Televangelist TB JOSHUA, known as The Prophet who numbers former Malawian president Joyce Banda among his disciples, blames foul play.
Rescuers attribute the crash to sub standard construction.
They’re concentrating their search on the restaurant of a guest house attached to the church where most of the victims have thus far been found

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Nigeria not forthcoming on SA dead in Lagos church collapse

Jean-Jacques Cornish — Tue, 16 Sep 2014 22:00:00 +0000

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoane Mashebane’s about to brief the media on South African efforts to get details of nationals killed and injured last Friday’s church building collapse in Lagos.

By all accounts neither the church nor the Nigerian authorities have been forthcoming.

Both the presidency and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation have remarked on what difficulty they are having getting useful information from their Nigerian counterparts.

There hasn’t been any on-the-record expression of disappointment let alone anger from Pretoria…

….Because the officials are at full stretch trying to get information to the families of the dead and injured and to get those victims repatriated.

But that’s not to say there won’t be a demarche later.

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