By EDITH BOLOKOR

Pastor Tunde Bakare, Serving Overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church (CGCC) on Sunday announced to members that the outstanding N4 billion debt owed Wema Bank Plc. By the church for construction of their Citadel edifice had been fully paid.

Bakare made the announcement in Lagos at the thanksgiving service of the Church to mark its 37 years anniversary.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the gigantic Citadel building houses the CGCC and the Citadel School of Government.

NAN recalls that in December 2021, the media was awash with allegations that Wema Bank was breathing down Bakare’s neck for allegedly refusing to service an uncollateralised N4.5 billion loan he took from the bank to build his Citadel Church edifice, formerly known as the Latter Rain Assembly, in Lagos.

It was further alleged that Bakare’s inability to service the loan allegedly caused it to balloon to N9 billion.

Bakare told the members that “the church owed Wema N4 billion and that it had been fully paid.

“We are currently negotiating the interest on the loan which will also be fully paid once the negotiations are concluded.”

He said the loan that the Church took for the building was not from WEMA bank alone but from four other banks which had long been paid off.

“We took N1.5 billion from Zenith Bank, N500 million from Fidelity Bank, N250 million from UBA, N100 million from Unity Bank and N4.5 billion from WEMA, with an initial deposit of N500 million to WEMA.

“We needed an approximated N12.1 billion to construct the Citadel house. About 50 per cent of this sum came from free will donations by members and our allies while the other percentage was from banks.

“It is very sad and unfortunate that mischief makers alleged that the church got the loan without security, which was a huge lie.

“The loan was guaranteed by our property that houses the church at No. 4 Akilo road, Ogba, and another property at no 30 Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja.

“I was devastated and embarrassed with the lies that the church was drowning in debt,” Bakare said.

The serving overseer said the WEMA debt was paid in March, adding that money for the payment was from the sale of the property at Akilo, which was sold at exactly N4 billion.

“Nobody sponsored the repayment. The building at Akilo attracted a foreign company interested in setting up an automobile business.

“The did not come through the agent we gave the property to but the foreign firm contacted two of our members directly and insisted on paying N4 billion instead of the N4.5 billion the property was listed for.”

He said that he strongly believed that failing to repay debts is a breach of integrity and sign of a wicked heart that lacked compassion.

“I thank God we did not drown in debt and I thank all our members and allies that stood by the Church. The completion of the edifice shall end in peace,” he added. (NAN)