Pastor Adeboye Breaks Silence On Viral Protest Photo, Reveals What Really Happened

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has dismissed reports claiming that he participated in a protest against former President Goodluck Jonathan, clarifying that the photograph circulating online was taken during a prayer walk in 2020.

Adeboye addressed the controversy during the church’s November 2026 Thanksgiving Service, where he explained that the exercise was organised to pray for Nigeria following a directive from the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

The cleric insisted that the gathering was not a political demonstration or protest against any government, but a religious exercise aimed at seeking divine intervention for the country.

According to Bush Radio Academy, Adeboye questioned the accuracy of reports linking the photograph to Jonathan’s administration, pointing out that the former president had left office in 2015, five years before the prayer walk took place.

He explained that the photograph showed him dressed in white and green attire while carrying a placard during the 2020 exercise, which occurred under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.

“It wasn’t a protest. It was a prayer walk,” the RCCG leader reportedly stated, maintaining that the journalist who published the claim had misrepresented the circumstances surrounding the photograph.

Adeboye criticised the journalist responsible for the report, accusing the individual of failing to conduct proper investigations before presenting the image as evidence of a protest against Jonathan.

The pastor also recalled studying journalism-related courses at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, during the 1960s, where he said he was introduced to the principles of investigative journalism and the importance of verifying information before publication.

He argued that the incident highlighted how misleading reports could spread and gain public acceptance when journalists and members of the public failed to establish the facts behind circulating information.

The RCCG General Overseer consequently urged journalists and other members of the creative industry to uphold professional ethics by conducting thorough investigations and confirming the authenticity of information before publishing reports.

He stressed that accuracy and responsible reporting remain essential to maintaining public trust in the media.