The General Overseer of Chapel of Freedom International Churches, Lokoja, Bishop John Ibenu, has renewed his appeal to government at all levels to prioritize scholarships and welfare support for underprivileged citizens, drawing on his own path from a struggling teenage teacher to a respected clergyman to make his case.
Speaking with journalists in Lokoja on Thursday ahead of his church’s 34th anniversary and annual convention, themed “Born to Reign,” Bishop Ibenu said his conviction is rooted in lived experience rather than abstract policy debate.
He recalled finishing secondary school in 1978 with no means for further education, since his father could not afford to send him on. To survive, he took up work as a primary school teacher using his Mock examination result, at a starting salary of 78 naira a month — considerably less than the 100 naira earned by holders of the West African School Certificate (WASC).
It was scholarship support, he said, that changed the trajectory of his life. After saving enough from his teaching salary to apply to Murtala College of Arts, Science and Technology. He arrived for the new academic year with almost nothing left, having spent his funds on school fees and basic essentials. A scholarship of 260 naira for the session arrived just in time. He gave 60 naira of it back to his father to support farming activities at home, freeing himself from further dependence on family funds.
“In the college, while others drank away their money, those of us who knew where we were coming from made sure the scholarship helped us,” he said.
The pattern repeated at Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, where he continued his education with scholarship support — medical students received about 650 naira and other students around 400 naira, an amount later raised to 800 naira. Even gaining admission required considerable sacrifice: his father spent three days raising 60 naira for the process, while his uncle, Dr. Achegbulu, contributed 70 naira and his guardian, Elder S. A. Haruna, made up the balance to reach 200 naira. Tuition at ABU stood at 120 naira for the first session and 90 naira in subsequent years — modest by today’s standards, but out of reach for many students at the time without scholarship support.
“It took scholarship for us to make up for our insufficiency,” Bishop Ibenu said. “Whether it is for one or ten persons, scholarship is scholarship.”
That history, he said, is why he consistently raises the issue whenever he meets state governors. “Please, remember the children of the poor,” he tells them, describing education as “the most important tool of emancipation for all of humanity.”
A Message to the Younger Generation
Beyond his appeal to government, Bishop Ibenu used the moment to speak directly to young people navigating their own hardships. He argued that every generation faces distinct challenges, and that the answer lies in resilience rather than blame.
“Life has never been easy for anyone,” he said. “We need to inspire people that they can make it. They don’t need to blame the system.”
Building Freedom Schools in Lokoja
Bishop Ibenu’s commitment to education extends into the institutions his church has built in Lokoja. When Chapel of Freedom International Churches first established its presence in the area, there was little development nearby aside from Government Day Secondary School, Adankolo. From 1997 to 2008, before the state government under then-Governor Alhaji Ibrahim Idris constructed a proper road to the site, the church took on the annual task of grading and maintaining the access roads itself.
Today, the church runs Freedom Nursery and Primary School, which Bishop Ibenu described as one of the most affordable schools in the area, alongside Freedom Faith Secondary School, established in 2004. The secondary school has produced no fewer than 13 graduating sets and has consistently posted strong results in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) exams. The church also extends scholarships to a number of its own students, mirroring the support that shaped Bishop Ibenu’s own education decades earlier.
34th Anniversary Convention: “Born to Reign”
The scholarship appeal comes as Chapel of Freedom International Churches prepares for its 34th anniversary and annual convention, an event Bishop Ibenu said is designed to equip attendees to “reign” through prayer and wisdom.
According to Bishop Ibenu, the convention’s teaching will center on wisdom as a practical, life-shaping force — one that builds discipline, creates wealth, fosters creativity, secures the future, and instills prudence, savings, and sound financial management. The program will also emphasize mentorship as a pathway to reigning in one’s calling, a theme he framed as a corrective to a generational shift he has observed.
“The current generation does not like mentoring because they live in a hype,” he said. “Some of them have their mentors on social media, who they cannot see or meet directly. In all endeavours, we need mentors.”
Family will also feature prominently in the convention’s teaching. Rev. Margaret Ibenu is billed to lead a session on “the reigning family,” with an emphasis on respect for parental guidance regardless of how far one has advanced in life.
“We need to teach this generation that regardless of the height they have attained, they need to listen to their parents,” Bishop Ibenu said.
He added that the broader convention program is designed to “cut across every sphere of life,” with organizers aiming to use the gathering to raise what he described as a vibrant and dynamic body of believers.
A Lineage of Mentorship
Bishop Ibenu’s own ministry reflects the mentorship culture he advocates. He has followed Bishop David Oyedepo since 1983 and was ordained by him on November 24, 1991, a relationship he describes in paternal terms. He was later consecrated a Bishop in 2001 by Archbishop Sam Amaga.
Taken together, Bishop Ibenu’s remarks frame this year’s anniversary convention not merely as a religious gathering, but as an extension of a personal philosophy he has carried since his own school days: that opportunity, once extended to those who lack means, multiplies far beyond its original cost — and that the obligation to extend it, whether from government or community institutions, never expires.
