I Did Not Receive Any Revelation About Atta Mills’ Death - TB Joshua

Prophet TB  Joshua,  the   founder  and  general  overseer  of  the  Synagogue  Church, Ikotun-Egbe, Lagos,    has expressed profound shock  over  the  death  of  the  late president  of  Ghana, Prof. John Atta Mills,   who  died  on  Monday.

Speaking  with  LEADERSHIP exclusively at  his  Ikotun  Synagogue  Church yesterday,  Pastor  Joshua  pointed  out  that  he  was  indeed   very  sad  at  the  death  of   the  Ghanaian  president,  saying   he   did  not   receive  any  revelation  concerning  the  death, otherwise  he  would  have   intensified   more  prayers  to  avert  his demise.

The cleric  pointed  out  that  the  late  Mills   was  like a spiritual   son   to  him  whom  he  cherished   deeply.  He  was   the  one  who  even  predicted   Mills  victory   as   the  Ghanaian  president   and  that  prophecy  came   to  pass, he stated.

“Mills was a  very  committed person    in  the   things of  God  and  also  very  dedicated.  Each  time  he  was  in  church  ,  you  could  see  the   fervor    and   hunger  and  thirst  for  God  written  all  over  his  countenance.  He   was  a  very  dear son  to  me  and  I  was  his   spiritual  godfather.

His death is a great  shock and  blow  to  me   personally,” said the cleric. “Of  course,  I  knew   he  had  been  ill  for  sometime  now   and   he   had  come for  special  prayers   concerning  his  health  thrice   this  year,  and   I   and  my  other  ministers  had  prayed  fervently for him.  I was so  hopeful  he   would recover   his  health  completely,   but   it is  sad and only God knows   best  why  he should   die now.

“I  know many  persons  will  be  saying   how  come   my  fervent  prayers  did  not  save  his  life.  All  I  can  answer such  persons   is,   why  did  GOD  allow  Stephen   in  the  New  Testament  Bible  to be  stoned  to death. Why  did  God not save  the  life of  Stephen,  an  innocent   man,  as he  was   being  stoned,  dying?

The  answer is  simply  this:  sometimes God  allows   things  to happen  for  unknown   reasons,  and  indeed  reasons   no  man  can  explain, that  is  why  God  is  Almighty  Sovereign  God;   who  indeed  can  question  Him,  who  can   challenge   God?

“When  we   humanity  eventually  see   God  in the  glorious  city  of Heaven, then,  can   we  have  answers  to   all   our  questions. For  now,  he   can  only   get  a  99  percent   answer    but  never  a  100  per   cent     answer.”

Pastor Joshua  pointed  out that  the  late  Mills  was a  very  humble and  dedicated    leader  who   had many  great  plans  on   how  to  revolutionise   the  economy  of  Ghana   for   greater  heights.

He   said   his  death was  “indeed  a great  loss to  humanity  at  large  and  especially   to  the  Ghanaian  citizenry”.

He   disclosed   that   he   had   done   so  much  concerted   prayers    for  the  late  Mills’   health   and,   aside    his  prayers, he  said,  the  late  Mills  had  also   had   frequent visits to the United States hospitals – three times this year alone - and  yet    God  still  allowed  him  to  die.”

Concerning   the ailment   that led to Mills’ death,    he said    the     late   president was suffering from throat cancer.

The late president Mills had openly admitted that Prophet TB Joshua played a crucial role on his ascension to the presidency and   even  said   so     publicly in a thanksgiving service held at the Synagogue Church   in  March 2009.

According to the late  Mills ,  the Prophet TB  told him that the election would travel to the third round before he would be declared the winner, which came to pass. “It, therefore, came as no surprise, when the Synagogue Church of All Nations was the first church he visited in Nigeria, after the Electoral Commission had declared him winner of the 2008 election.”

One  of   the  church members   of   the  Synagogue  Church   who  spoke  to   LEADERSHIP  yesterday  and  gave  his name  simply  as  Bro  Stephen  said,  “I  cried when  I  learnt  of the  death  of the  Ghanaian  president.  You  see,  the  man  was a  very  wonderful, caring  man  who,  when  he  did  his thanksgiving   in  March  2009,  did  a lot of things  for our church. Also,  each  time  he  visited Nigeria,  he  always  came  to our  church  and  his  visit  was always  felt  in  many  ways.

“All  of us  members  are  sad  over  his  death.  Our  Prophet  TB  Joshua  is  even  sadder.  But  what  can  we do?  God knows best,   and  I  know  God  will  comfort   each  and every  one  of us, especially  his  immediate  family  there  in  Ghana.”

Ghanaians mourn, suspend campaign
Meanwhile, Ghanaians are in mourning following the death of President Mills who was due to seek re-election in December. The country’s main opposition party announced yesterday that it was suspending its campaign during a period of national mourning.

Vice President John Mahama was sworn in late Tuesday only hours after Atta Mills passed away, underscoring Ghana’s democratic stability and maturity. No public announcement has been made yet on the cause of his death or funeral arrangements.

Atta Mills was elected in a 2008 runoff vote that was the closest in Ghana’s history.

But questions over who will now step into Mills’ shoes as the candidate to keep his governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) in power in December’s elections will inject some uncertainty into the political outlook.

Mills, seeking a second term despite having suffered for years from undisclosed health problems, had already won his party’s nomination to run against the opposition New Patriotic Party’s Nana Akufo-Addo, defeating a divisive challenge from the wife of still influential ex-president Jerry Rawlings.

Some analysts expect Nana Konadu, Rawlings’ wife whom Mills crushed in the NDC primaries, to claim an automatic nomination.

But Alban Bagbin, Ghana’s health minister and a member of the NDC legal team, said the party would hold an extraordinary meeting to pick a new candidate for what is expected to be a tight race for the presidency.

Flags flew at half mast yesterday as the nation began a week of national mourning for Mills, who had served as president since winning a 2008 presidential contest that won plaudits for going down to the wire but remaining peaceful.

“I am personally devastated. I’ve lost a father, I’ve lost a friend, I’ve lost a mentor and a senior comrade,” Mahama said in his first comments after being sworn in before a somber parliament on Tuesday evening. “The fine gentleman that he was, President Mills rightly earned the title ‘Asomdwehene’ (King of Peace). He brought a distinctive insight to Ghanaian politics. He remained humble, honest and modest throughout his years in public service.”

That sense of loss was shared by ordinary Ghanaians too.

Tributes poured in from around the globe from heads of state like US President Barack Obama, who had feted Ghana under Mills as a model and “good news story” for Africa.

Rivals were quick to praise the nation’s handling of the sudden loss. “We are showing a maturity that must encourage all Ghanaians,” said opposition NPP chairman Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey.

Mahama, fresh from a US tour to promote a recently published personal memoir on Ghana’s history, is widely expected to maintain current policies in his caretaker role.

Yet, amid the plaudits for his predecessor, he will inherit the same struggles Mills had faced in managing Ghanaians’ high expectations over the flow of crude from the country’s Jubilee oil field since 2010, and in tackling corruption scandals that have dogged the NDC administration.