Eight Pastors Told: Heal Hospital Patients or Stay in Jail — Soludo

AWKA — The Governor of Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, has thrown down a dramatic challenge to eight pastors arrested over alleged fake miracle claims: publicly heal a genuinely sick person in a hospital, and you will walk free.

Speaking in Awka amid growing controversy over the detentions, Soludo questioned why the self-styled faith healers refuse to step beyond their church altars and demonstrate their powers on real patients suffering from serious medical conditions.

“You are holding yourselves in detention,” the governor said. “We are ready to release you if you can perform the so-called arranged miracles you claim to do in your churches.”

He urged the clerics to “move beyond church altars and perform genuine miracles on patients suffering from serious ailments in hospitals”.

According to the governor, the state government would have no reason to continue holding the pastors if they could heal the sick as advertised during their crusades and church services.

“Come to the hospital and lay your hands on any crippled person, blind person, or someone with a spinal cord injury,” Soludo declared. “If they are healed, you will be released immediately.”

The eight pastors were reportedly detained as part of the state government’s ongoing crackdown on what it describes as deceptive religious practices, under a wider campaign against criminality and misinformation.

Governor Soludo has repeatedly insisted that individuals who exploit residents through false claims will not be allowed to thrive in Anambra State. He stressed that his administration remains committed to protecting citizens from fraud disguised as religion.

The governor’s challenge has already sparked fresh debate across the state, with residents now waiting to see whether the detained pastors will accept the unusual test – or remain behind bars.