The Redeemed Christian Church of God’s (RCCG) City of David parish in Lagos State is undergoing an audit following the suspension of its former pastor, Idowu Iluyomade. The audit comes as Pastor Charles Kpandei officially took over leadership of the parish on Sunday.
Pastor Kpandei introduced himself to the congregation during the second service and emphasized the importance of unity and welcoming one another.
“Are you really happy to be in church today? For those of you who are just coming for the second service, it is important to tell you that I am called Pastor Charles Kpandei. You need that name because you are going to tell somebody that on behalf of Pastor Charles Kpandei, you are welcome to church today,” he said.
He also delivered a sermon focused on the theme of heaven and prayed for the parish, quoting Nehemiah 13:14.
The parish is being audited by KPMG, an external audit firm, in light of an alleged N320 million debt. This audit follows the suspension of Pastor Iluyomade on June 1, 2024, by the RCCG Governing Council. The council had set up a panel to investigate the allegations against him and the parish. Iluyomade was subsequently asked to resume duties at the church’s headquarters.
Iluyomade, also known as PID, is the Special Assistant to the RCCG General Overseer on Christian Social Responsibility. His suspension came shortly after his wife’s 60th birthday celebration, which drew attention following the death of Herbert Wigwe, a prominent church member and former CEO of Access Bank. The suspension was reportedly linked to issues surrounding the audit of the church and Iluyomade’s resistance to being transferred from the parish.
A source within the church, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that the audit was necessary because RCCG auditors had not reviewed most of the provinces under the Apapa Family, which includes the City of David.
“The parish is currently being audited by KPMG, which is not an RCCG financial and audit practice. It was necessary to get an external auditor because before now, most of the provinces under the Apapa Family were not audited by RCCG auditors,” the source explained.
During the June 9 service, one of the pastors announced that “the church had paid about N15 million for the construction of the Trinity Tower between June 1 and 8. However, the parish still faces an outstanding debt of N320 million, as indicated in the financial sheet displayed to the congregation.”