I don’t survive on offerings and tithes – ‘Terrotorial Commander’

OSHIKANGO-based pastor Erickson Festus, whose church was closed down by the Namibian Police led by chief inspector Christina van Dunem Dafonsech last week, says he does not survive on tithes and offerings from his church.

Festus, who calls himself ‘Territorial Commander’, owns True Gospel of Salvation Ministry. He made this claim in a live video on social media on Friday.

He asked whether the “10 and five cents” offered by his congregants are enough for him to survive.

“The church has bank accounts where church contributions are kept and I am not a signatory on any of those accounts,” he said.

He said his church, which he registered with the Business Intellectual Property Authority under the name Commander’s Grace Investment and Construction gets 20% from his Walvis Bay-based cleaning company Telemai Investment.

He said Telemai Investment has a tender to clean government buildings, private buildings and hotels.

Responding to police allegations that his church is not registered, Festus said his church was registered by a lawyer as a non-profit association in Windhoek in August 2011.

“This church is not from the bush,” he said.

Festus stated that his church does not charge people, it prays for them.

“Those alleging that I told people on HIV treatment to stop taking their medication are lying. I have never said that,” he said.

He added that some of the police officers who closed down his church are among those who have been healed by his church.

Festus advised the police to deal with pastors who wronged instead of closing all the churches thinking that they are all “fake”.

He said his church, which he established 10 years ago has 71 branches throughout the country and none of his pastors or congregants has a criminal case opened against them with the police.

Festus said his pastors are well trained and he holds pastoral meetings with them on 29 December of each year.

He further stated that even if his church has been closed, the word of God has not been closed down.

“The word of God is not closable, the spirit of Jehovah is not closable. You can close the church, you can arrest the pastor, God is not arrestable. I’m not a boy of God, I’m a man of God,” he said.

Speaking on Kati FM, where Festus and Dafonsech were interviewed together on Saturday, Dafonsech said she and her colleagues decided to shut down Festus’ church because it was used as an accommodation for sick people, there was anointing water and that congregants were “ill-disciplined”.

She also said she was informed by members of the public that the church reveals to the congregants who bewitches them.

“They shouted ‘fire, fire’ at us and that [you will sh**t],” Dafonsech said.

Festus said he supports Dafosench to close ‘fake’ churches. He also said if the police open his church, he will not allow people to camp at the church.

Festus said he is a former prisoner, who had been in and out of prison for various crimes.

He said the first time he was imprisoned was in 1994 when he was 14 years old, and the last time was in 2008 when he broke into a Klein Windhoek house to steal items.

On 28 October that year, he said he repented. He said after prison, he attended International Bible Study School in Cape Town in 2012 to become a pastor, and was ordained the same year.

Two weeks ago, Namibian Police inspector general Sebastian Ndeitunga sent Dafonsech to the Ohangwena region to meet pastors of ‘fake’ churches.

Dafonsech heads the Khomas region’s community policing department.

Ndeitunga said she would assist members of the community to deal with the said churches.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.