Joshua to 'help the families'

Pastor TB Joshua is planning to assist the families of South Africans who were killed or injured when the six-storey guesthouse belonging to his Synagogue, Church of All Nations collapsed in Lagos earlier this month.

Attorney Bally Chuene, a member of the church who returned to South Africa on Thursday after spending 10 days in Lagos, confirmed that local church members were visiting the affected families to see what financial assistance could be provided for burial and other costs. "The church has committed itself to assist the affected families financially and otherwise," Chuene said.

Chuene was invited to Lagos by fellow South African businessman and philanthropist Dr Tim Tebeila. The two, together with four senior members of the Nigerian church, issued regular updates to South African officials about the numbers of locals who died or were injured during the tragedy.

"As a member of the team from the church's side, we provided information to the SA high commissioner and consul general and co-ordinated with the various SA delegations that were subsequently sent."

Chuene said TB Joshua was "extremely saddened" by the tragedy. He vehemently denied reports that church members had prevented the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency from assisting at the scene.

"There was no such thing. There is no rationale at all for the church to refuse NEMA, which was trying to assist."

He said the church had called in at least five private emergency rescue companies to assist in the rescue operations.

"In Lagos, you don't have the latest available services such as rescue emergency services like you have here in South Africa."

He said the church's seven ambulances had been used to transfer the injured to hospitals and that the church would foot the bill for the cost of storing the bodies in mortuaries in Lagos.