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Conservative Christians Knock Popular Nigerian Pastor Over Comment On Porn Addiction Remedy
Popular Nigerian pastor and founder of Abel Damina Ministries International, Dr Abel Damina, has been knocked for his comment on the remedy to porn addiction.
Damina gave his submission while speaking on Comfort FM’s Righteous Invasion of Truth (RIOT) programme in Uyo in late February.
The clip of the sermon made the rounds on Thursday where the pastor was asked how a person addicted to pornography could stop and get rid of it totally.
He advised such persons not to struggle to stop but should keep watching while listening to the word of God at the same time.
“Don’t struggle to stop watching the porn. Don’t struggle at all. Just keep watching the porn. As you are watching the porn, spend more time hearing the ‘word’. If you watch porn for one hour, spend three to four hours hearing the word of God.
“Take not. Go get all my teachings on Christ. Just keep learning and learning. After a while, you will find out that your appetite for porn is dying and the appetite for the word of God is growing. Before you know it, when you see porn, you will be irritated.
“Word of God will kill that appetite completely and give you a healthy appetite. That’s what to do. Don’t try to stop. In fact, keep watching, but spend more time studying God’s word, and you will find out that before you know it, your desire for porn would be gone,” the pastor stated.
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However, this submission has been greeted by dissension, especially from conservative Christians on social media who believed that the pastor was encouraging people, mostly addicts, to sin.
A prominent pastor, Gideon Odoma of the Fortress Ministry countered Damina’s submission while labelling pornography as a perversion.
“Christains have trivialise sexcapades. The things God call iniquities, we must never call it flexing,” he said.
The pastor who had previously slammed Damina and Apostle Suleman for supporting the Old Testament over the New Testament remarked that both of them have wrong teaching and their objective is to derail the Christians.
“The Damina and Suleman terms are wrong. It as if their only objective in life is to derail believers so they have a lot of time on their hands and they find different creative ways to say the same useless things — Your sin does not matter — they find all sorts of ways to discredit as it were,” he said.
Another prominent pastor, Chris Oyakhilome, while quoting Habakkuk chapter 2 verse 15, submitted that pornography is a sin that should be avoided completely.
He emphasised that God recognised nakedness as a feeling of shame because pornography is synonymous with prostitution as it draws from Greek’s linguistic corpus —pony—meaning prostitute.
“The indication is that once nakedness is being made public, it is a shame when you’re not a child. As far as God is concerned, that is a shame.
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“It started from Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden apple. Their eyes were open and they found that they were naked and then covered themselves with leaves and hid from God. Christians desist from it. Those who believe in Jesus should not do it,” he stressed.
Aside from Oyakhilome and Odoma, some other Christians are lending their voice to fault Damina’s sermon.
One Rachael, who tweeted with the handle, @ab_seyi wrote, “I am fighting tears. Lord help this man, help his followers, help him not to die like this. This is sad.”
Sandra Okafor with the handle, @okaforsandra20 said, “Even the Bible said ‘flee from every appearance of evil’. You can’t want to stop doing something and still be doing it, expecting a miracle to happen because you’re reading the word of God. As one of the cessation steps for smokers, they’re advised to throw away and move away from their triggers; be it the cigarette boxes, lighters, smoking partners, and smoking environment because you gradually become what you’re constantly exposed to. So this advice is biblically and also morally wrong.
“You’re supposed to throw away all triggers that make you want to watch porn and as you do your part, you ask the Holy Spirit to empower you and deliver you from its grip. It’s normal to stumble but thank God for the mercies of God that bring us back to Him.”
Nonetheless, while endorsing the contentious claim, Pastor Oge, the lead pastor of Cicle Church said he struggled with poor addiction in the early stage of his life and despite seeing a therapist to stop the act, it continued.
“Dr Damina’s Porn Remedy; I struggled with porn addiction in the early stages of my life and I can tell you categorically, the struggle doesn’t help.
“Saying ‘I won’t watch Porn again’, will not stop you! That’s why it’s called an addiction! I saw a therapist and the therapist said to replace the desire to watch porn with something else… Help my brain associate the porn triggers with something else,” he wrote on his X handle.
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Oge further justified Damina’s sermon saying it was the biblical way of dealing with the addiction but that the pastor didn’t convey it well.
“What Dr Damina said is the Bible’s way to deal with addictions. He just didn’t say it well.”
A Facebook user with name, Restoration Arena also said, “I think the point he is trying to make is, a believer should not struggle with sin. Instead the believer should replace struggle with living the Word and walk in the Spirit. While that is done, sin appetite will die.”
“There is nothing wrong with what he said. All these people of little understanding, why judging him?” another user, Evangelist Precious said.
Chastising them for aligning with the proposition, one Wisdom Chiezugo with the handle, @Wchiezugo stated, “You guys are defending him because it’s what you want to hear. That’s not how God works. Read the scriptures for yourselves.
“Maybe when you bring one scripture that supports you to keep sinning and be reading the word together then I’ll engage you. In the meantime, Keep watching the porn.”
Damina is the CEO of Kingdom Life Network (KLN) – a Christian satellite TV channel.
He is also the Senior Pastor of Power City International headquartered in Uyo, Nigeria with extension campuses across the world.
He hosts the TV programme, Righteous Invasion of Truth (RIOT) on KLN as well as on other television and radio stations.
News
Nigeria Ready, Willing To Host Commonwealth Games — Tinubu
Nigeria on Thursday welcomed the Commonwealth Sport Bid Evaluation Committee to Abuja, a major step towards hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games.
President Bola Tinubu, represented by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, formally received the delegation at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
“What I can assure you is that we’re ready,” Tinubu told the delegation.
He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to hosting an inclusive, diverse, and world-class 2030 Commonwealth Games on African soil.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed this in a statement he signed Thursday titled, ‘Nigeria ready to host Africa’s First Commonwealth Games in 2030-President Tinubu assures.’
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Gbajabiamila, along with a strong Federal Government team of Ministers and senior government officials, held strategic talks with the delegation led by Darren Hall, Director of Games and Assurance at Commonwealth Sport, and a member of the 2030 Evaluation Commission.
President Tinubu emphasised that the Commonwealth champions unity and diversity, and Africa deserves its moment after nearly a century.
Africa has never hosted the Games since their inception in 1930. Nigeria made an unsuccessful bid to host the 2014 Games. The city of Durban in South Africa won the bid to host the 2022 Games, but could not do so due to financial difficulties. Birmingham in the UK took over and hosted the Games. Thus, Nigeria’s bid to host the 2030 Games would be historic, Onanuga stated.
In his welcome remarks, Gbajabiamila called on the visitors to savour Nigeria’s renowned hospitality: “You’re very welcome to Nigeria. I hope you enjoy our great hospitality, which we are known for. Mr President also asked me personally to convey his regards; he fully supports this bid.”
“The President has written a Letter of Guarantee to you; his full weight is behind this bid. What I can assure you is that we’re ready. We’re willing, we’re able, and we actually want this. It’s been almost 100 years. The games have not been held on any soil in Africa.
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”The element of inclusivity is what the Commonwealth is, and we hope that will benefit us,” he stated.
President Tinubu stressed that his administration has set some bold reforms to reposition sports, having realised its role as a strategic driver of national development.
He added that he scrapped the Ministry of Sports and replaced it with the National Sports Commission in the bid to drive sports development.
The President further assured the delegation that all infrastructural, security, and hospitality needs will be met ahead of schedule.
He emphasised that Nigeria’s bid is not just about hosting but also leaving a legacy for youth and national development.
READ ALSO:Tinubu, French President Macron Hold Private Meeting
Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, made a strong case for Nigeria over India, stressing that Africa has 22 Commonwealth nations, and Nigeria, as the continent’s giant, deserves the honour.
“One thing I want to assure you is that the President sees the hosting of the Commonwealth Games in 2030, if we win the bid, as a celebration of the country’s growing force in sports, beyond just participation.”
President of Commonwealth Sport Nigeria, Habu Gumel, said the country is ready to host an environmentally sustainable Games.
Chairman of the Bid Committee, Mainasara Illo, presented Nigeria’s proposal, highlighting key plans and innovations.
He revealed that Nigeria proposes 15 sports, with football introduced to boost excitement, global visibility, and audience engagement.
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Director of Games and Assurance, Darren Hall, thanked President Tinubu and the Nigerian team for their warm welcome.
“I have been most thrilled by the passion of the Nigerian people in all their endeavours, including sports.”
He said the Commonwealth, now comprising 56 nations, aims for greater diversity as it approaches its 100-year milestone.
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Minister of Information and National Orientation, Muhammed Idris, Minister of Aviation, Festus Kayamo, Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Musa Dangiwa and Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Gaidam, attended the meeting and made statements in support of the bid.
Nigeria and India are the two official bidders for the 2030 Games, with Abuja and Ahmedabad, in Gujarat, as their proposed host cities.
After a thorough evaluation of both bids, the Commonwealth Games General Assembly will decide the host city in November 2025.
The next Commonwealth Games will be held in 2026 across four venues in Glasgow, Scotland, from July 23 to August 2.
News
JAMB Extends Post-UTME Deadline For Underage Candidates In 23 Varsities
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has extended the deadline for universities to submit Post-UTME screening scores of underage candidates who sat for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination
JAMB’s spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, announced the extension on Thursday in a statement on Thursday.
Benjamin, who explained that the decision was reached in collaboration with the affected institutions, said a reminder has been sent via email to the defaulting universities.
He noted that despite the release of the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination results by the National Examinations Council on September 17, several institutions had yet to comply.
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Benjamin, hoiwever, urged the affected institutions to forward the results without further delay.
He said, “23 out of 71 universities failed to meet the earlier deadline of September 15 for the submission of the scores. The institutions are among those chosen by candidates seeking admission.”
Benjamin further directed all public universities to upload their recommended candidates to the Central Admissions Processing System on or before September 30, while private universities have until October 31.
He added, “The measure was necessary to meet the overall admission deadlines of October 30 for public universities and November 30 for private institutions.”
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Benjamin said a breakdown of the affected schools shows that the University of Lagos tops the list with 39 underage candidates, followed by Nile University of Nigeria, Abuja, with 18, and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, with 15.
Others include the University of Abuja with 12 underage candidates, University of Uyo with nine, Federal University of Technology, Owerri has eight, and David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Uburu with six.
The board spokesperson added that in total, 135 underage candidates are involved across 23 institutions.
READ ALSO:JAMB Sets Cut-off Mark For University Admissions
JAMB had earlier disclosed in August that it would conduct a special screening for over 500 outstanding underage candidates seeking admission for the 2025/2026 academic session.
Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, said the screening would be handled by a technical committee between September 22 and 26 at designated centres in Lagos, Abuja, and Owerri.
He noted that while 41,027 underage candidates wrote the 2025 UTME, only a little over 500 met the requirements to proceed to the next stage.
News
FULL LIST: Anglican Church Approves 15 New Dioceses
The Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, has approved the creation of 15 new dioceses, bringing the total number of dioceses across the country to 176.
The decision was taken at the Standing Committee Meeting of the Church, which held in Ekiti State between September 15 and 19, 2025.
According to a statement signed on Thursday by the Church’s Communication Officer, Korede Akintunde, the approval followed a series of inspections, verifications and validation exercises after the lifting of the moratorium on the creation of new dioceses in September 2024.
The statement read, “The inspection team are as follows: Old Province 1 headed by Archbishop Joseph Akinfenwa, Old Province 2 headed by Archbishop David Onuoha while Old Province 3 headed by Archbishop Daniel Yisa.
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“They presented their fact-finding report at the Standing Committee held at Niger-Delta Diocese in February 2025 which formed the basis of the assignments of the Church of Nigeria Validation Team on the creation of full-fledged and missionary Dioceses which was constituted and inaugurated by the Primate on 27th March, 2025, headed by the Most Rev’d Dr Timothy Yahaya.
“The Validation Team in turn visited, inspected and verified the contents of the report of the Inspection Teams and Verification Committee and made the recommendations to the Primate on the creation of full-fledged and missionary Dioceses in the Church of Nigeria.”
The statement noted that five of the new dioceses would operate as full-fledged dioceses, while 10 others were approved as missionary dioceses.
The full-fledged dioceses are:
1. Ekiti South Diocese out of Ekiti Diocese
2. Kalabari Diocese out of Niger Delta Diocese
3. Lagos South West Diocese out of Lagos West Diocese
4. Omoku Diocese out of Ahoada Diocese
5. Ozoro Diocese out of Oleh Diocese
READ ALSO:Nigerians, Churches Groaning Under Economic Pressure — Anglican Bishop
The missionary dioceses include:
1. Eket Diocese out of Uyo Diocese
2. Idanre Diocese out of Akure Diocese
3. Ikom Diocese out of Calabar Diocese
4. Keffi Diocese out of Kubwa and Lafia Dioceses
5. Nasarawa Diocese out of Lafia Diocese
6. Ogoja Diocese out of Calabar Diocese
7. Oyo South Diocese out of Oyo Diocese
8. Oyun Diocese out of Kwara Diocese
9. Takum Diocese out of Jalingo Diocese
10. Zuru Diocese out of Kebbi Diocese
The church added that the election of bishops, consecration, inaugurations, and enthronement dates would be announced later.
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