Matthew Ashimolowo, Founder and Senior Pastor of Kingsway International Christian Centre, has announced that the church, through its Christ Compassion with the Rural World Foundation (CCRWF), will organize a six-day crusade in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The 72-year-old made this known during a press conference on Tuesday at Liberty Stadium, which PREMIUM TIMES attended.
In November 2023, this newspaper reported that Ashimolowo donated relief items to thousands of people and funded surgical operations, provided food, clothing, books and other essential items to residents of Igbogbo area in Ikorodu, Lagos State, during the first edition of the crusade. .
Ashimolowo said the crusade, themed 'Ibadan: This is Love 2024', will be held from November 25 to 30 at the Liberty Stadium and will feature five unique programmes.
He revealed that the church has partnered with four hospitals to perform surgeries on 711 people in Ibadan during the crusade.
The author of more than 110 books also revealed that thirty-three surgeons will be present to perform major and minor surgeries.
The pockets to be distributed among Ibadan residents during the crusade
He said: “It is a crusade of compassion and it is a crusade to meet the needs of the people. I saw it with those people in Ghana. I was surprised that these Pentecostals, who believe in healing the sick and seeing the miraculous, also rented a hospital and performed surgery. And that has always been the standard at Kingsway International Christian Center (KICC). I was trained by a church called Foursquare and I love their balance. If a man needs medicine, give him medicine; that has guided me for 50 years, leading us to say that we will do the surgery.
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“Thirty-three surgeons were here in Ibadan two weeks ago and they examined people for three or four days. Of the thousands who came, we had indicated that we could only afford to pay for 400 surgeries, which is not small money, but instead of 400, they ended up with 711. Seven hundred and eleven people will benefit from CCRWF surgery. “
He noted that the 711 individuals must collect prescriptions for their conditions based on histological results, allowing surgeons to accurately identify what is wrong with their bodies.
relief materials
Furthermore, Ashimolowo revealed that his church has prepared important relief supplies to distribute to residents during the mega crusade.
After the press conference, the cleric took this reporter and other journalists on a tour of the warehouse where relief supplies and food intended for distribution at the crusade were stored.
Furthermore, the cleric explained that each night during the crusade bills would be distributed to collect relief supplies and food, and that the actual distribution would take place the next morning.
He stressed that only those who received a ticket for the crusade would be eligible to receive relief supplies and food, and emphasized that the program was open to all, regardless of religion or ethnicity.
“We already have beans, rice, noodles and cassava flakes. When we're done, you'll see it there. We have 10,000 cubes that we want to give to women, especially nursing mothers and older women. We still have to deliver 10,000 packets of sugar and 10,000 packets of salt before the end of this week. We have 10,000 bottles of oil. We have several other gifts we are going to give out, so that is the schedule for distribution day.
Package of beans and others in the warehouse.
“You may be wondering how we are going to do it. We have divided the stadium into four equal sections so that some youths do not harass women and their children. The young people are located on one floor and can interact with each other. The younger ladies are in a different section. And this is Yoruba land, where we honor the elders and the elder mothers, who are placed in it. We are already prepared and willing to carry out our distribution,” he added.
According to him, the church held its first crusade in the Ikorodu area of Lagos in 2023 and has since learned better ways to handle distribution.
He noted that although the distribution went smoothly in Ikorodu, there were challenges, particularly in handling the large crowd.
He said: “This crusade, the things we distribute, are not that expensive; Even the challenge in the country means we have to spend a lot on crowd management just to get the barriers up. The barriers cost us something like N13 million for 500 barricades, but when they gave me the bill for the 1,000 barricades, I said cut them down and let the police do the rest.
“The Nigerian police, who will be working with us, will have between 200 and 250 police officers on the ground. We are grateful to the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, who we have met and are in talks with his staff, who will assist us in different areas: crowd control, transportation, traffic management, etc.
Medical scope
The Osun-born cleric also announced that the church would conduct two days of medical outreach to serve between 100 and 150 people.
He added that the two-day extension will operate from 6:00 am to 8:00 pm, with a team of 200 doctors, approximately 150 pharmacists and 100 nurses ready to assist attendees.
He noted: “We will have two days of medical examinations in Ibadan, and with these medical examinations, we are fielding 200 doctors, about 150 pharmacists, about 100 nurses and other medical professionals. If you want, we can send you what the design will look like, but what we will do on Friday and Saturday of the CCRWF crusade is not just medical help; It's the place to become a hospital, it's not like they're just testing people and telling them to go and recover.
“You will have to go through all the processes that you go through in a hospital. You will be examined, taken and transferred to a doctor. The doctor will now give you the prescription and they will take you to the pharmacy that I told you about before. We divided the area so that women and children were on one side, young men on one side, young women on one side, and men on one side. So, two days of medical outreach, and I can't tell you how much it costs, but we are preparing for between 100,000 and 150,000 people; “That is the number of people we are preparing for.”
Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo shows PREMIUM TIMES journalist other food and relief materials that will be distributed
He explained that he and his church were motivated by their love of God, the desire to save souls, and the belief that God still cares for people in difficult times.
“The Church of Jesus Christ is not about 'give me, give me, give me'; It's also about 'give you, give you, give you'. I am showing you how Christ got to that point in the CCRWF crusade. I can't even tell you how much it costs us. I even say that I paid 80 to 90 percent for this crusade; Our church, KSCC, does not put money into this. Still, our prayer platform provides 10 percent of the time, so we have decided to be a part of this.
“I have seen it, but every part of what we are doing is very important; It is exciting to do it and it is exciting to see souls be born again and give their lives to Christ. So the last two days are medical days. On Friday we start at 8 am and close at 6 pm. We start at 8am but close at 6pm on the second day. And if someone thinks they will come twice a day, we have a method to find out who came; we will keep that one close to our chest. I don't know if I've covered all the areas, but there it is.”
ministry school for pastors
Furthermore, Mr. Ashimolowo announced that a School of Ministry would train between five and ten thousand pastors and ministers of God.
He added that the school's operations would coincide with the distribution of relief materials and food to residents.
The cleric added: “My vision, desire and dream is to make an impact, not just any impact, but an impact that remains and lasts. On the Wednesday of the crusade, from approximately 10am to 1pm or so, we will have a school of ministry for pastors and ministers of the gospel that will be held while the distribution is taking place. We expect between five and ten thousand shepherds.
“We have Bibles and books that I want to give them, but above all at the end we give them a certificate of attendance. Some of our school of ministry speakers will be flying in: one person from New York, two from Ghana, and others from Nigeria. We have a strong school of ministry that impacts pastors, so any pastor who comes forward will be blessed to have the advantage of hearing from these people whose corporate experience spans 500 to 600 years. That is what the CCRWF crusade is.”
Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo addresses the PREMIUMTIMES reporter and others in the warehouse.
Additionally, he announced that the church had purchased 30,000 anti-parasitic medications for children.
Night of miracles and healing.
The cleric further mentioned that the CCRWF would hold four nights dedicated to healings and miracles for those in attendance.
“On the 25th, the night of the crusade, every afternoon we believe in the power of God. We believe in salvation through Jesus Christ. We believe in the extended hand of God. We believe in what he says: 'And this is love, that they know you, that we love him, for which he loved us and gave his life.'
We want to present Jesus with the power of salvation and healing every night: Monday night, Tuesday night, Wednesday night, and Thursday night. I stopped on Thursday; those are the only four nights that Healing and Miracle Crusades are held. But on the mornings of Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, there are again three mornings. So, four nights of Healing Crusades and three mornings of distribution,'' he noted.