Thursday 31 January 2013

Thinking they are smarter than God: Ugandan gay couple marries in Swedish church



 Ugandan gay couple marries in Swedish church

http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/ugandan-gay-couple-marries-swedish-church280113

A gay couple who fled from Uganda's homophobic laws have married, but one of them could soon be deported

| By Joe Morgan

A gay couple who fled from Uganda’s homophobic laws have legally married in Sweden.

Lawrence Kaala and Jimmy Sswerwadda, who claim to be the first ever Ugandan gay couple to legally marry, said their vows on Saturday (26 January).

The couple married on the two-year anniversary of the murder of David Kato, one of the African country’s most famous LGBT activists.

Sweden QX’s editor Jon Voss described it as a ‘historic event not only for the lucky two, but for the LGBT community and movement in Uganda’.

While Kaala and Sswerwadda knew each other in Uganda, it was not too long before Sswerwadda was forced to flee to a country far more welcoming of gay people in 2008. The couple soon lost contact.

As Uganda’s hatred of gay people grew, Kaala said he had to suffer beatings by government officials and in the workplace.

Once his family turned their backs on him, he too was forced to flee.

Kaala traveled to Sweden, settled, and one day signed up for a magazine subscription to Come Out.

The first issue to arrive had a man on the cover who he had ‘never stopped loving’, Sswerwadda.

At a gay activist meeting in Stockholm, the African couple met again in a stairwell. They kissed and say they have never looked back.

But the Sweden Migration Board (SMB) has given the worst possible wedding gift to the couple, forcing Kaala to return to Uganda.

The deportation order has been issued, and friends of the couple are now working to get the SMB to see Kaala is in need of asylum.

Voss said: ‘They understand how symbolically important marriage is and how it makes it even more difficult for Lawrence Kaala to return to Uganda.

‘In an ideal scenario, the bureaucrats at the Migration Board and lawyers in the Immigration Courts come to their senses.’

On 4 February, Uganda’s parliament returns and the Anti-Homosexuality Bill will be top of the agenda.

Tuesday 29 January 2013

When Thugs Invade The Pulpit: Pastor Michael Whitsey Indicted On Narcotics & Money Laundering





Pastor Michael Whitsey Indicted On Narcotics & Money Laundering



PimpPreacher.com 09/26/2012 Memphis Bureau

When Thugs Invade The Pulpit

Michael Whitsey is a perfect example of what happens when a congregation lowers their standards and opens the pulpit to any thug who can “Preach Good.” In a report gift wrapped for Pimppreacher.com Michael Whitsey has just been indicted on 10 counts of money laundering tied to narcotics distribution.


Michael Whitsey pleaded not guilty yesterday in federal court and now faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine if found guilty. Please allow us to rewind the story and explain how the congregation at Abundant Life Christian Church in Antioch, Tennessee came to the realization that their Pastor was the Real Life Scarface. Buckle up!


Back in August members of the congregation showed up for Sunday services only to find the doors of the church locked and a sign on the door explaining that the services were being canceled due to measures out of their control.


As reported by WSMV.com Pastor Michael Whitsey had the church in an intense fund raising drive in order to save the church from bankruptcy, but the members eventually discovered that their church had entered into foreclosure proceedings over a year ago.


“The doors were locked.


A sign on the door read the church was temporarily closed due to unpreventable measures and the members were invited to another location.


But a Channel 4 I-Team investigation revealed the church isn't temporarily closed. The bank has seized the building.


And the man whose pictures and paintings of himself and his wife adorn the front lobby of the church, Pastor Mike Whitsey, knew the bankruptcy was coming for some time.

"He didn't make anyone aware that the church was being shut down," said a former church member who asked for anonymity.


Former members told the Channel 4 I-Team that up until the church closed, they were told to open their wallets to get the church out of debt. "He (Whitsey) was asking people to give more, he wanted everybody to give $1,000 before June."

The members now want to know what happened to the money they gave. "A lot of people, including myself, gave that thousand dollars," the former member said. Court filings obtained by the Channel 4 I-Team show the church filed for bankruptcy in June 2011. Whitsey is named as president of the debtor. In August 2011, court records show repeated cases of checks being written to Whitsey and his wife.


Lawyers for Pinnacle Bank, which gave Whitsey the loan, wrote there was gross mismanagement of the estate. Still, former members said they were asked to keep giving. "He's (Whitsey's) lying. That's all he's been doing is lying. Constantly. And he needs to be exposed," the former member said. Whitsey denied our repeated requests for an interview.


Whitsey did send out an email after the church was closed and blamed a decline in offering for the financial woes.


A statement from the deacons of the church, sent to the Channel 4 I-Team, stated in part, "He (Whitsey), neither us, will engage in any on or off camera interviews pertaining to this or any other matter... the church took on several financial shortfalls due to a decline in membership and other business endeavors."


There was no mention in the statement about what happened to the money given by the congregation.


The bankruptcy filings show the attorney for the church recently asked to no longer represent them and said he could not control his client.


Whitsey had a Bible study Tuesday at Meharry Medical College and we attempted to speak to him. Once campus security realized why we were there, they asked us to leave campus.”


Just Call Me Pastor Scarface!


As if that was not bad enough, our Pimp Preacher Poster Child was also indicted for conspiring to conduct $375,000 in criminal transactions during an estimated period of between May and December 2008.


According to the Tennessean.com


The U.S. attorneys are seeking forfeiture of $375,000 as proceeds from the money laundering and a piece of land that they say Whitsey purchased in order to conceal more than $200,000 in alleged sale of narcotics. The piece of land is located near a proposed Agripark Drive in Rutherford County, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.


Agents with the IRS-Criminal Investigation and DEA DrugTask Force investigated the case. Caryll Alpert, federal public defender, will represent Whitsey.

Whitsey and his wife, known as First Lady Michele, began Abundant Life Christian Center in 2000. The church, which is broadcast nationally, grew to more than 500 members in four locations — Nashville, Columbia, Tullahoma and Murfreesboro.

To view the complete Indictment against Michael Whitsey Click Here
To view a copy of the Bankruptcy Filings please Click Here

Thousands Join Obama and Biden for One-World Religious Service at Washington National Cathedral



 

Thousands Join Obama and Biden for One-World Religious Service at Washington National Cathedral

http://christiannews.net/2013/01/22/thousands-join-obama-and-biden-for-one-world-religious-service-at-washington-national-cathedral/  



Washington, D.C. Over two thousand people joined Barack Obama and Joseph Biden for an interfaith inaugural service this morning at the Washington National Cathedral, which united the nation’s religions in prayer for the Obama administration.

Attorney General Eric Holder, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer were all stated to be in attendance.

The service included a variety of guests from a number of religions, who presented Christian, Catholic, Muslim, Sikh and Jewish prayers for the president. Islamic Society of North America President Mohamed Magid delivered an invocation asking that Obama would have “discernment and the self-control necessary to our time,” a Sikh representative asked that all men would have “concern for our neighbors,” and a Catholic layman spoke of the need for interdependence in America.

“Transform the jangling discourse of our nation into a beautiful symphony of the human family,” prayed Raphael Warnock of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Martin Luther King Jr. once pastored. “And through us may the earth and all of the families of the earth be blessed.”

Many of the guests who prayed or spoke were also women ministers. Barbara Williams-Skinner from the National African American Clergy Network appeared at the event, as well as Julie Schonfeld, executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly. Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church offered prayers, and Mariann Edgar Budde, bishop of Washington, also made an appearance in welcoming attendees.

As previously reported, one of the keynote speakers for the event was Adam Hamilton of United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, the largest megachurch within its denomination. Hamilton, who is known as being the author of the book Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White: Thoughts on Religion, Morality and Politics, delivered a message about finding common ground and working together.

“Over the last two weeks, I’ve been praying a lot. ‘God, what would you have me to say to these remarkable people? And the first thing I felt God wanted me to say to you was simply, thank you. Thank you,” he began. “[Some people] really want to make a difference; they really want to change the world for the better. I believe that represents you and all the people in your administration, and the leadership of our country.”

Hamilton continued by speaking on the life of Moses, whom he called the “great emancipator,” in light of 2013 marking the 150th year since Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. He stated that people must be humble like Moses, find a common vision and work together.

“You should’ve been a preacher,” Hamilton remarked to Obama, evoking laughter.

“God actually has you exactly where God wants you,” he later added. “And yesterday you began to lay out a vision for us in your inaugural address that was very powerful and compelling.”

In addition to Hamilton and the other featured guests, the Washington Performing Arts Society’s children’s choir sang “Determined to Go On” for those present.

This morning’s service was the third that Obama has attended in the past three days. Yesterday, prior to the inaugural service, he attended St. John’s Episcopal across from the White House. Among the guests at the service included Cecile Richards, the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

“Honored to be at church with President Obama this morning,” she Tweeted yesterday morning.

During Monday’s pre-inaugural service, Andy Stanley, son of well-known Baptist preacher Charles Stanley and megachurch pastor of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia, delivered a message in which he reportedly told Obama that he should be called the “pastor-in-chief.”

“Mr. President, you have an awfully big room,” he said. “My prayer to you is to leverage that power for the stewardship of our nation.”

Services at Washington National Cathedral following inaugural ceremonies have been a long-held American tradition, spanning 106 years. Earlier this month, the Episcopalian Cathedral announced that it would begin hosting same-sex ceremonies for homosexual couples.

TV donations down, Crystal Cathedral sees red



 File photo of the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove.

TV donations down, Crystal Cathedral sees red

http://www.ocregister.com/news/cathedral-409349-ministry-million.html

Bobby Schuller is new 'Hour of Power' pastor
Published: Jan. 25, 2013 Updated: Jan. 27, 2013 11:16 a.m.

By ROXANA KOPETMAN and RONALD CAMPBELL / ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

GARDEN GROVE – Donations to the Crystal Cathedral went down and the ministry ended last year in the red.

The Crystal Cathedral is "eking by," Sheila Wiegel, the cathedral's chief financial officer, told some 150 congregants gathered for a meeting Thursday night.

Donations to the cathedral's flagship Hour of Power television ministry fell by $4 million, contributing to a 27 percent drop in the cathedral's annual revenue.

"We need large donors to make a commitment to our present and future," Wiegel said.

Expenses need to be cut further, she said.

As part of a wide-ranging presentation about the cathedral's future, its school and its finances, Wiegel gave an overview of the troubled ministry's finances. The ministry emerged from a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization last year, selling its landmark cathedral and campus to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange to pay off debts.

During the same meeting, cathedral leaders announced that Bobby Schuller, grandson of the Rev. Robert H. Schuller who began the ministry some 50 years ago, is the new pastor of the Hour of Power television program.

Revenue during the last nine months of 2012 dropped from approximately $15 million to $11 million, compared to the same period in the previous year. But expenditures also were cut, including layoffs and unpaid furlough days for the remaining staff, by more than $3 million, Wiegel said.

The Crystal Cathedral Ministries ended the year with a net loss of $319,000, she said.

But each quarter improved throughout 2012, Wiegel told congregants. And in the last quarter, the ministry's finances were in the black, she said.

The bulk of the ministry's revenue comes from the Hour of Power television program that is telecast across the United States and 11 countries. In 2011, it accounted for 78 percent of the ministry's revenue, or about $12 million. In 2012, that amount dropped to approximately $8 million, or 72 percent of its revenue.

Donations to the church itself netted nearly $1.2 million, Wiegel reported. School fees accounted for an additional $1.3 million.

A large percentage of donations came from estates, Wiegel said. As the ministry looks ahead, it cannot rely on estate gifts for its day-to-day operations, she said. That money should be set aside for reserves, she continued.

"People are sacrificing to support this message," Wiegel said, becoming teary-eyed as she concluded her presentation. "We need donations."

Monday 28 January 2013

After successfully taking the Nebanda death saga out of the lime light of the press, Uganda government denies army take over : The purpose of all this hullabaloo on army take over simply aimed at diverting the press from the Nebanda death saga which exposed Museveni’s government



Late MP Cerinah Nebanda

FIRST READ

Rule of Rwitabagomi: President Museveni is reported to have warned the ruling party’s retreat in Kyankwanzi on Wednesday that if the “confusion” in Parliament persists, the military will take over.



American Client states and the art of deception: Trying to Divert us from the Nebanda case using scare crows of Ebola and Political intimidation: Ebola suspected in Mubende district: Museveni summons NRM MPs to Kyankwanzi to frustrate a recall of MPs to debate the Nebanda saga 

 

Nebanda did not take a corrosive substance’

http://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/ThoughtIdeas/-Nebanda-did-not-take-a-corrosive-substance-/-/689844/1653690/-/10fu7gx/-/index.html



Nebanda Death saga: MPs punch holes in Kalungi confession as Ssekikubo is beaten and brutally arrested

http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2013/01/nebanda-death-saga-mps-punch-holes-in.html

If you are not the killer why Doctor pictures??? Adam Musa Masuba the so Called ex-lover of late Nebanda says that the late started taking drugs this YEAR as a way of reducing her weight: Oh: really

http://watchmanafrica.blogspot.com/2013/01/if-you-are-not-killer-why-doctor.html


Gen. Kahinda Otafiire




By Issa Aliga Sembabule & Yasiin Mugerwa

Posted  Tuesday, January 29  2013 at  02:00

In Summary
Gen. Otafiire’s remarks came after several senior soldiers who weighed in on the raging debate about the possibility of a coup, with some describing talk of a military takeover as “barbaric”. 

For saying that the army could be compelled to grab power, Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire has reminded the army that President Museveni was elected by the people and swore to resist those who want to “disorganise” the country.

Gen. Otafiire who was the chief guest at Theodore Ssekikubo’s graduation party in Lwemiyaga Constituency in Ssembabule on Sunday had no kind words for the coup plotters. He asked soldiers to stay in barracks and warned the UPDF against meddling in the affairs of government and politics, saying such a move was uncalled for.

“I have heard that the UPDF have been talking about taking over the government. But I want to warn them that the role of the army is to defend the territorial integrity and the Constitution of Uganda not to hijack power. President Museveni was elected by the people to lead for five years and the parliament was elected by the people of Uganda,” Gen Otafiire said.

He said: “Leave the government alone. The three arms of government work like brothers; they know how to solve their issues [without military intervention]. Every person has his or her lubimbi (sense of duty), the government does not belong to the president, not even parliament, power belongs to the people and the role of the executive is to ensure that we deliver services and it’s the role of parliament to ensure oversight.”

Gen. Otafiire’s remarks came after several senior soldiers who weighed in on the raging debate about the possibility of a coup, with some describing talk of a military takeover as “barbaric”. The debate was started by Defence Minister, Dr Crispus Kiyonga, repeated by President Museveni in Kyankwanzi and later confirmed by army commander Gen Aronda Nyakairima.

Addressing the contest between the executive and parliament, Gen. Otafiire, who is the Justice Minister, who made it clear that he was not representing the government and that he came as a friend to Mr Ssekikubo to congratulate him upon his attainment of a Bachelor of Laws degree, commended outspoken NRM MPs for speaking the truth in the fight against corruption in government.


In applauding Mr Ssekikubo for being “courageous” and “outspoken” in Parliament, Gen. Otafiire who gave two cows to Mr Ssekikubo, invoked the analogy of a person with eye mucus and a mirror, wondering whether it’s logical for a person with “Obujonjo” (the eye mucus) to break the mirror instead of cleaning his or her eyes.


“If they speak about corruption within some of us; is it not true? I like Ssekikubo myself because when I am wrong, he tells me so and I like him for his honesty and always speaking the truth,” Gen Otafiire said.


He added: “I don’t how to tell lies; if you like me or not, I don’t care as long I say the truth. These MPs were sent to Parliament to speak and that’s exactly what they are doing. Allow the President to do his job and the parliament to do its work. Those in parliament are not going to violate the Constitution and for us in the executive, we are not about to do that either. Nobody is going to disorganise our country when we are looking on.”



Gen. Otafiire who spoke in Luganda mixed with Runyankole said that the major reason why some big people complain about Ssekikubo is because he always speaks out openly against corruption and the questionable deals that they engage in.


He thanked the people of Lwemiyaga for voting a “fearless” parliamentarian. He asked Mr Ssekikubo to use the law degree that he acquired from Makerere University to articulate the issues affecting the people of Lwemiyaga in parliament. At least 10 outspoken MPs attended the function.


Mr Ssekikubo said those who describe him as a “rebel” and speak about sending him out of the NRM, are plotting to throw the people of Lwemiyaga out of NRM party. Most of the rebel MPs who spoke at the function said they will not be intimidated and vowed to keep talking about the government failures.


Asked what he made of Gen. Otafiire’s comments, Mr Ssekikubo said, the general’s comments should be taken seriously, adding that his message against corruption and abuse of office should be taken seriously. “I salute him for courage, not many ministers are brave to speak the truth. He never dipped his hands in public funds which has been a challenge to many ministers,” Mr Ssekikubo said.


Background

In August 2007, Gen. Otafiire warned that Uganda could slip into anarchy if there is no orderly transition from President Museveni to another leader. "If there is going to be transition, it has to be orderly. That is what we are struggling for," said Maj. Gen. Otafiire, adding that only President Museveni can decide on the issue of who will succeed him. He was appearing on 93.3 Kfm's Hot Seat Programme.

 Brig. Ggwanga.  

Coup not possible, says Brig. Ggwanga

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Coup-not-possible--says-Brig--Ggwanga/-/688334/1678034/-/hhvcwjz/-/index.html

By JOHN TUGUME

Posted  Tuesday, January 29  2013 at  02:00

In Summary
Forget it. President’s adviser on security says coup won’t happen but the military will target the corrupt.

Ggwanga has joined a growing list of senior officers who have denounced talk about a possible army take-over, saying problems of the 21st century need brains and not guns and bullets.

Brig. Ggwanga, President Museveni’s adviser on security in Buganda, said people should not be worried about comments made by the Head of State that the army could take over if what he called “confusion” continues in Parliament.

“We are in the 21st century. You just don’t talk about military rule. If you want to tangle with (US president Barack) Obama, talk about military,” Brig. Ggwanga told this newspaper during an exclusive interview he requested on Sunday.

The President reportedly alluded, two weeks ago, at a ruling party retreat in Kyankwanzi about the UPDF taking charge of government.

Brig. Ggwanga said: “We, the military taking over? No way. May be what the President did not tell you is that we [the military] will go after his people … may be the President was quoted out of context.”

The senior soldier added: “We did our work, fought the war, and handed the government to civilians. But these civilians are betraying us through corruption. This is where we shall step in to lock up all those accused of misusing the taxpayers’ money.”

Asked what he meant by Museveni’s people, Brig. Ggwanga said: “Look at those ministers siphoning money to private use. You think we are not watching? We have decided that whichever corrupt official gets bail, we shall take them to the military prison. They are let free to go and tamper with evidence and the next thing you hear is they are innocent.”

Last evening, Presidential Adviser on the Media John Nagenda also ruled out the possibility of a coup.
The army spokesman yesterday dismissed the take-over talk as “something manufactured by the Monitor boardroom”.

“No one has talked about a coup,” Col. Felix Kulayigye said, before he hang up the phone.
Brig. Ggwanga said like-thinking colleagues were anxiously waiting for the Ssimbwa Bill for them “to jump into action”.

Makindye East MP John Ssimbwa has proposed in a private member’s Bill that whoever is found guilty of corruption should have their property or that of their immediate relatives confiscated to recover the abused funds. The Bill is yet to be discussed.

Brig. Ggwanga said the NRM MPs are to blame for the poverty in the country. “Look at the NRM manifesto. Agriculture should be prioritised and more jobs created for our youth. The MPs have gone astray...” he said.

“I hear them taking about punishing rebel MPs. That’s crap. Ugandans need food on the table, they don’t understand politics,” he added.

 State Minister for Regional Cooperation Asumani Kiyingi (R) with US ambassador to Uganda Scott Delisi at the opening of a four-day workshop in Kampala yesterday. The workshop seeks to improve the regional response to transnational threats in eastern Africa. PHOTO BY STEPHEN WANDERA 



US warns E.A armies on undermining democracy

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/US-warns-E-A-armies-on-undermining-democracy/-/688334/1678050/-/fbg4vsz/-/index.html

By John Njoroge

Posted  Tuesday, January 29  2013 at  02:00

In Summary
Peppering the cracks. U.S Ambassador to Uganda reminds regional army leaders how they have come along way in maintaining peace, warning that they must not turn the guns on civilians.

The United States government has expressed concern that there could be a threat to democracy if some regional militaries abdicate their functions of upholding the rule of law.

“Strong, professional militaries are essential to regional security. Security, in turn, is essential to development as it allows economies to prosper and democratic institutions to grow,” U.S Ambassador to Uganda, Scott Delisi said yesterday.

“If, however, those militaries threaten that prosperity, if they do not support the democratic institutions they are meant to uphold, then the foundation of our efforts crumble, and East Africa risks falling back into the bloody cycle of revolution and counter-revolution,” Ambassador Delisi added.

The ambassador made the observations while opening a four-day workshop on improving regional responses to transnational threats.

The appeal

He noted that the U.S did not want regional nations to “descend into morass of problems generated by poverty, infectious disease, and unchecked conflict.”

The remarks come a week after both the Chief of Defence Forces General Aronda Nyakairima and Defence Minister, Dr Crispus Kiyonga said the Ugandan army could re-insert itself in the country’s politics.

The US government representative did not make any direct reference to the current debate about the possibility of the army staging a coup d’tat in the face of the stand-off between the Executive and Parliament.

The two arms of government have been at loggerheads over the anti-corruption fight. Commending President Museveni’s efforts in the regional war on terror and the fight against the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Ambassador Delisi also warned that such progress was “fragile.”

“As nations move forward to address threats to peace and stability, they must also ensure that the tools they use to combat these threats do not become the threats themselves,” Ambassador Delisi said.

Intimidating Parliament?

Following the comments by Gen. Aronda and Dr Kiyonga, political commentators have criticised what they consider is a ploy to intimidate Parliament.

Others have suggested that the coup talk which Mr Museveni was also quoted hinting on amounts to a direct attack on the Constitution and may constitute an incitement to commit the offence of treason.

However, Deputy Police Spokesperson Vicent Ssekate yesterday said the Force has seen no offence in the statements of the two officials.

“We see no offence hence there is nothing to investigated,” Mr Ssekate said last evening.
At State House, Presidential Spokesman Tamale Murundi insisted Uganda’s military was entitled to its opinion on political events in the country.

“That is why we have 10 military MPs in Parliament and not police officers or prisons officers. The army is simply telling Parliament that they too have a role. Let the politicians not think this is a one-man-show,” Mr Mirundi said.

“Why is the opposition afraid of a military headed government? They have been saying that the current government is incompetent and corrupt. They should be jubilating,” Mr Mirundi added.

Parliamentary summons

The Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs has been quoted saying it will summon the two officials to clarify their reasons for suggesting a possible overthrow of the government by the army.

Deputy Attorney-General Fred Ruhindi yesterday told this newspaper his office had not received any formal communication or complaint over the matter.

“I have only been reading those things in the media. Nothing has been directed to me in my official capacity,” Mr Ruhindi said.



Museveni on coup talk, Besigye and Muhoozi

Wednesday, 06 February 2013 15:32

Written by President Yoweri Museveni

I have been watching, without comment, the circus that has been going on in the newspapers of Uganda about UPDF wanting to make a coup; that some leaders, including myself, made comments to that effect.

Then, that manufactured lie being amplified by individuals who, for many years, have been in the habit of promoting intrigue and indiscipline in the NRM. A few other commentators like Mr. John Nagenda appeared to have been genuinely duped by this subterfuge manufactured by the Daily Monitor newspaper and its collaborators.


I refused to comment for two reasons. Reason number one is that some of these newspapers endlessly tell lies. One would have to abandon more useful work to respond to the lies and malice of these papers always manipulated by the enemies of Uganda.

The second reason is that I do not want to be used by the enemies of Uganda to also contribute to the diversion of the public’s attention from their core interests to the endless schemes of these enemies.

The intention of these enemies is to divert the attention of the public from their core interests to these lies and also to scare businesses that may want to come to Uganda by presenting Uganda as potentially unstable. I cannot join such schemes annoying though they may be. At Kyankwanzi, we only allowed the Press at the opening ceremony and the closing ceremony. During the rest of the time (this time, from 11th to 18th of January, 2013), we were engaged in very serious discussions about a very large number of topics confidentially.

In the end, we passed Resolutions which were published. The Daily Monitor newspaper may not even have published those Resolutions – deliberate conclusions of the NRM’s Parliamentary Caucus Retreat.

Instead, they manufacture a lie or bring issues totally out of context. I cannot, nevertheless, be provoked into answering the lies of such schemers in order to “clarify” because those were confidential discussions.

As time passes, Uganda will grow more immune to this endless blackmail and provocation. As for the schemers, there is a time for everything, it says in the Book of Ecclesiastes Chapter 3: 1-8: “…There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the Heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot…..a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace”


We have seen such characters before. On the 23rd of January, 1973, for instance, I was on a clandestine mission with two of my colleagues in Mbale against Idi Amin’s regime. We were in Maumbe’s house, House No.49, Maluku Estate. At around 1500 hours, we were suddenly surrounded by about 15 military Police of Idi Amin. I fought my way out of that encirclement but, unfortunately, my two colleagues were killed.

We also killed two of the Military Police. The schemers and the enemies were soon at work. “Museveni is the one who killed his colleagues. If he did not kill them, why did he not die himself? Why did he escape alive?” All those schemes never stopped the NRM from winning victories. We are now much better positioned to defeat those schemes compared to 1973, when we were much weaker but as greatly motivated as we are today.

I wish good luck to the schemers. Nevertheless, I have now decided to write something because the Sunday Monitor of the 3rd of February, 2013, published an interview by Dr. Besigye. The aim of the Monitor paper is always to demean the achievements of the NRM and divert Ugandans from their core interests. Now that the whole of Uganda is peaceful, we have adequate electricity, we (the NRM) discovered the oil for the Ugandans, we have a massive educated force, etc., this is too much for the Monitor newspaper.

They must promote chaos through talk of coups, lies about the Prime Minister and Ministers taking bribes from oil companies, recall of Parliament, Museveni killing the late Nebanda, etc. Monitor newspaper you will fail.


Since, however, Dr. Besigye gave an extensive interview in that enemy paper attacking the achievements of NRM over the last 43 years of struggle for liberation and the building of Uganda in the last 27 years of that time, I will answer him for the sake of the young people who do not know that history well.


I will start with his last point while responding to the Monitor Interviewer who asked Dr. Besigye the following question: “But the NRM has as well grown the economy.  President Museveni revealed at the same function that the economy is growing 14 times annually?”  Of course, this question had itself a mistake.  The economy is now 14 times bigger than it was in 1986.  It is now 50 trillion shillings while in 1986, it was 3.5 trillion shillings.

In dollars, it is US$ 20 billion.  In the 1990s only the economy of Kenya was US$ 12 billion in East Africa.  We have now surpassed that level.  By the end of this Financial Year, the economy will be 58 trillion shillings or about US$ 22 billion in spite of the slower rate of growth created, partly, by the slower global rate of growth.


Dr. Besigye answered the interviewer by saying that the NRM has failed to live up to Point Number 5 of the NRM Programme of building an integrated self-sustaining economy – that is, creating an economy with inter-sectoral linkages, e.g. agriculture producing raw materials for industry and industry producing inputs for agriculture, etc.

It is true that the NRM has not completed the job of transformation of the economy, mainly, for two reasons: the very low base from which we started and sabotage by some political actors, especially, those who, eventually, joined FDC and other opposition groups.  I remember very well that, for instance, many of those who opposed Bujagaali hydro power project were individuals who, eventually, joined the opposition groups. Bujagaali is now finished, but late by about 15 years. That is why we will no longer tolerate those internal saboteurs or those from the opposition opposing industrialization.

Nevertheless, that sabotage and the low base we started from notwithstanding, the progress in industrial production can only be denied by somebody who is pathologically biased.  The share of industry to GDP is now 26.4% while in 1986, it was 9.9% of GDP. This is 26.4% of an economy that is 14 times bigger than it was in 1986. The industrialization of the economy under NRM started with the rehabilitation of industries that were producing consumer goods: beers, sodas, soap, sugar, tea, etc.

Before 1986, all these were being imported from Kenya, they were in great scarcity and they were being smuggled into the country.  The smuggling (known as magendo) meant that the State was not getting taxes on these goods. Uganda is not only self-sufficient in most of these goods but is, actually, exporting a lot of them to the neighbouring countries. The value of the exports of industrial goods is now US$ 509 million.

Then, there is the production of intermediate goods (goods that are needed as inputs into other industries) such as cement and steel-bars (mitayimbwa) for construction.  The relevant figures are: the production of cement in 1986 was about 76,400 metric tonnes per annum; the production is now 2.4 million met. tonnes per annum.

The production of mitayimbwa was 832 metric tonnes per annum in 1986. It is now about 240,000 metric tonnes per annum. The production of car batteries in 1986 was 4,000 batteries per annum. The production is now 170,000 batteries per annum. Many of these products are being exported to the neighbouring countries.

Uganda is now exporting industrial products.  Then, there is the value addition to agricultural products.  Let us take the example of milk.  By 1986, all processed milk was coming from outside (Kenya, Denmark, etc.).  Today, Uganda is not only self-sufficient in processed milk products but she is actually exporting quite a bit of these, not only to the region but internationally.


Recently, we have been negotiating with India to accept our processed milk. There are scientific innovations and inventions – banana starch, juices, machine-parts and machines, the electric car, etc. Now that we have, finally, overcome the sabotage of the groups people like Dr. Besigye belong to by regaining the initiative in electricity, nothing will stop us. Uganda is now generating (installed capacity) 828 MW compared to 60 MW in 1986.

We would be much further if it was not for the sabotage of the said factions.  Dr. Besigye keeps deceiving civilians who do not know the history of NRA well that we have been running a Military Government all these years. Surely, Dr. Besigye, you know very well that these sabotages by your groups would not have been possible if we were running a Military Government; nor would have been the indiscipline by the political actors possible.

It is precisely because of the early civilianization and democratization of the politics that saboteurs have been able to delay our progress including industrialization. We do not regret this, however, because it allows the whole population to be involved in the debates (needless debates created by either saboteurs or ego-centric actors) and, in the process, the population matures more politically and ideologically.

That is why the NRM has been winning in all the General Elections in spite of the reckless and irresponsible lies by the opposition – “Museveni has sold Lake Victoria; Museveni has sold Lake Kyoga, etc.” It is slower but it is the only way to move.  An NRA/UPDF Military Government, provided we had our own financial resources (we did not have to depend on the outside money), would have moved much, much faster on the transformation of Uganda and Dr. Besigye knows that very well.

The sort of schemes he has been promoting would not have been possible. However, right from the beginning we democratized Uganda and have had to cope with the slower pace and more tedious work of dealing with indisciplined, malicious, opinionated or, sometimes, just un-informed actors.  Since 1986, the UPDF-NRA ensures peace as well as stability and the civilians manage or mismanage the politics, the administration and the justice.

That is the accurate characterization of the situation of Uganda under the NRM. I must congratulate Dr. Besigye because, in recent statements, he has acknowledged the undeniable success of the NRA/UPDF. In his recent interview, he, for instance, said: “in some parts of the country where there were no insurgencies, especially the Southern and Central Uganda, security has been generally better than it was before 1986 and one can say, therefore, thanks to the NRM Government.”

He, then, spoils that correct assessment by quickly adding: “But that is debatable because indeed there was no challenge to the regime”!!  Well that is not correct.  There was Itongwa who was quickly put out of action.  There was “walk to work”, which was defeated by the Police in spite of the very weak legal framework that would allow a trouble maker to flout bail terms and continue to be free to threaten the merchandise of tomato sellers in the markets.

There were challenges in the South and the Central regions but they were defeated. After all, the Rwenzori and Bunyoro are part of the South where ADF tormented people.  ADF was defeated without NRA/UPDF violating the human rights of the population. Similarly, in the North and North-East, the terrorists and cattle-rustlers were defeated.

There were some mistakes like Mukula and Bucoro incidents as well as deliberate crimes like Kanyum. Where these mistakes and crimes came to the surface (were reported) decisive action was taken. Since 1986, we have publicly executed 22 soldiers on account of committing serious crimes against wanainchi, such as murder, armed robbery, rape, etc.

That is why the much suffering population of Northern Uganda and North-Eastern Uganda ran to IDPs because they were protected by the Army. They did not run into exile. They had confidence in the Army and they knew they were running away from terrorists. In fact, the population was blaming us for not defeating the rebels quickly.

After all, the first people to take up arrows against the terrorists in 1991 were the people of Acholi.  That is when Kony started cutting off people’s limbs, noses, legs, etc., because they were reporting him to UPDF because he was disturbing their peace.

Witchcraft:The satanic things Ugandan Women do keep their men




Witchcraft: Things women do to keep their men



Publish Date: Jan 28, 2013


Women are collecting body fluids like urine and menstrual blood among others to keep their errant husbands in check on witchcraft advice. So, under the guise of needing an urgent solution to a cheating husband, our undercover reporter visited some shrines in Katwe, Makindye and Wakaliga to seek advice from traditional medicine women.


I found a number of shrines and herbal shops in Makindye, but the chills of entering a shrine got the better of me, so instead, I eased into a herbal shop. I was warmly welcomed by one lady, Saudah.


For fear of being seen by someone I know, I hurriedly addressed my three concerns — my husband does not provide for the family, is a cheat and has a low self-drive. I told Saudah I needed something to make him more interested in me and to stop him from cheating.


Saudah’s response was: “Banange abasajja!” ["But men!"]


She pulled out different bottles and white polythene bags, telling me how each of the substances works. A soil-like powdery herb was to be mixed in my husband’s food, tea, juice and soda while serving him. After consuming the food containing the medicine, my husband would lose interest in other women.


She tipped that the spell would be more effective if the medicine is applied directly onto the food. I would have to use the same soil-like herb to cleanse my private parts before I made love to my husband, as the medicine would make my private parts “tight and sweet”.


She pulled out another type which looked like grass and told me I was supposed to burn it inside the house every day for five weeks. I would have to burn it while calling my husband’s name and command him to think of me wherever he goes. According to Saudah, the spell works better when the individual burns the grassy herb stark naked.

I paid sh50,000 for all the concoctions, took her phone number and she told me to check with her in case of any change.


The confidence of entering a shrine that had abandoned me at first came back immediately I left the herbal shop. Inside the shrine were three naked women smoking pipes (emmindi). I learnt that the women strip so that they do not smell of smoke after leaving the shrine. I told the in-charge of the shrine, an old woman called Jjajja, that I just wanted something to seal my marriage and also get a promotion at work.


“For how long have you been married?” she asked. I told her five years.


"Mwanawange, abasajja benzi. Oyina okwefako buliomu asikaaza wuwe," Which translates to: My child, all men are cheats. You have to take care of yourself as everybody pulls to their own favour, she cautioned.


At first, she laughed off my offer of sh20,000 for the job, saying it was little money for such a big problem. But when I feigned desperation, she accepted. She immediately sent one of the women inside,who came back with a black polythene bag full of different types of grass, small tree branches and animal hides.


She sorted the herbs one by one, starting with one that looked like tea leaves. This, I was supposed to tie in a polythene bag, get a thread out of my husband’s shirt, underwear or trousers, put it inside the polythene bag together with the herbs.


Then I would tie it on the part of the bed where my husband could not see it. Every morning, as I made the bed, I was supposed to touch the herbs chanting my husband’s name and whatever else I wanted.


"Gamba nti gwe gundi nkusibide wano.Laba nze nzeka ngatogenda walala," which loosely translates to say you are mine alone. Consider me alone. Never see anyone else”.


The old woman instructed me to sew some herbs in one of the pillows he uses.


For the promotion at work, she advised me to wrap some of the herbs and put them in my bag and should ensure that I move with it everywhere I go.


She said if my husband tried to sleep with another woman, he would smell like faeces, which would turn that woman off. She said if I did not realise any change, I should bring her a rare type of chicken, one I had never heard of. That visit cost me sh25,000.

 Some of the substances that our reporter bought from the different shrines visited. Each had its own way of being used. PHOTO/Lillia Babirye


The next shrine I visited seemed like it had stood the test of time. I told the woman there my marital concerns. She was indifferent. She told me not to spend money buying herbs because there was no herb in this country that could stop men from cheating. She told me to pay sh10,000 and then gives me a solution she said would make my husband come back home early.


“After preparing food and you are ready to serve him, go outside and squat to urinate. Make sure you get the first drop of your urine and put it in a cup or tin. When you are serving him, pour it in his soup and juice. As you are doing that, say that ‘the way this urine has pained me, is the same way you should feel pain when you intend to cheat on me.’ When you do that, you will come back and tell me,” she said.


She advised that as I am bewitching my husband, I should try to show him respect, be clean and try to be willing to learn more sex skills because men want to see new things whenever they want to sleep with women.


When I was ready to leave, she told me to show her my right-hand palm. She examined it and plainly assured me that I do not have a chance with men – that most of them just want to use me and dump me. But she said that since I had come to her place, all my marital woes would be history.


The woman told me that since she has seen the problem is with me, I should blow the pipe she was smoking and say my husband’s name and things I want him to start doing. She told me the words I should say. For example, “Malcolm, I am the only woman you should love, provide for and think of all the time. Give me all the money I ask for. You should even marry me as your official wife, involve me in your plans and obey my suggestions.”


When she had finished telling me what to say, she handed me the pipe – I had never held one before! She taught me how to smoke it. Helplessly, I followed her directions on how to smoke the pipe. I cannot remember what I said.


I moved out regretting why I had entered that shrine.


 Apparently, a man just finds himself spending more time at home and buying his woman expensive gifts and posting her pictures on Facebook all the time. He may blame it on growing up and settling yet the woman quietly knows the reasons. She also has to pay routine visits to the witchdoctor.


Expert opinion


Joseph Musalo, a counsellor at Uganda Christian University, Mukono, says witchcraft has never been a solution to couples who have issues in their marriage. Witchdoctors just play on people’s minds. If he realizes you have not been preparing good food for your husband, that day, he will tell you to prepare something extra special then he gives you herbs.


Psychologically, you will take extra care in how that meal will turn out, your husband will like it and when he comes home two days in a row after that, you think the witchcraft is working.


Musaalo adds that once a person engages in witchcraft, it is very hard for them to drop it. They attribute anything small to witchcraft. If a couple has problems, they should seek help from a professional counsellor. Most people do not take counselling seriously. There are burning issues couples cannot tell each other because of their egos, but when they contact a counsellor, they can air them out and get help.


He advised that in case you suspect that there is something wrong in your relationship, communicate to your spouse during your free time and discuss.


“Breakdown in communication can break marriages. Couples should trust and respect each other to avoid visiting witchdoctors for help,” he said.


Would you resort to witchcraft?


Annet Katusime
I have never seen a person who visits witchdoctors and gets a stable marriage. If witchdoctors had herbs for stopping men from cheating, why do married people still die of HIV/AIDS or divorce day and night? Those are liars.

There is a lady I know who visited a witchdoctor to stop her husband from cheating and beating her. After making the man eat the herbs, instead she was beaten till she divorced him. I cannot even step there.


Hellen Chandiru

I do not believe in witchcraft. I cannot even waste my time visiting them. It is against my faith. If my husband is a cheat, I would take it before the Lord. And trust me, my prayers would change him.


Sarah Annet
There is a time my husband would not leave money for upkeep at home and was instead spending it on alcohol for his friends at the pub. I went to Mukono and got herbs.

Slowly, my husband gave up on heavy drinking and became responsible. Even my friends who have visited witchdoctors can testify that those things work. Most people do, but they do not want to admit it, even those who go to church.


Madina Tikakya
Those herbs from witchdoctors just worsen the situation. For the 30 years I have lived, I have never heard any success story about witchcraft. Even people who say they give others blessings are also struggling.


James Ssewanyana
I would only visit a witchdoctor if he had herbs to make me get a lot of money and get a promotion at work. But for bewitching my wife, I would never do that. If a woman cheats on me then it is fine because I will get another one.

New HIV/Aids campaign sparks debate in Uganda



 A billboard in Kampala bearing the controversial message on HIV/Aids. PHOTO BY ABUBAKER LUBOWA 

New HIV/Aids campaign sparks debate

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/New-HIV-Aids-campaign-sparks-debate/-/688334/1674848/-/1a7v8gz/-/index.html

By Agencies

Posted  Saturday, January 26  2013 at  00:00

In Summary
Controversy. While critics say the new strategy promotes promiscuity, the proponents argue that the message is practical.

A new HIV-prevention campaign in Uganda that addresses infidelity is generating debate over the direction the country’s HIV strategy should take.

Billboards erected in various parts of Kampala, by Uganda Cares - a programme of the US NGO Aids Healthcare Foundation (AHF) - bears the image of a broken heart and the lines “Cheating? Use a condom” and “Cheated on? Get tested”.

The campaign aims to address the growing vulnerability of couples in long-term relationships to HIV. Studies show that 43 per cent of new HIV infections occur in such unions.

“Let’s be realistic... The HIV infections among married couples are high. So what we are putting across is that if you must cheat, remember to use a condom in order to protect your partner,” Ms Mina Nakawuka, AHF’s regional director of advocacy and public relations told IRIN.

“Those who cheat must use condoms correctly and consistently. Those who feel cheated [on] must take an HIV test. If we don’t do that, we shall not be able to reduce HIV infections in Uganda.”

But the Uganda Aids Commission (UAC), the main government body tasked with managing the country’s HIV response, has ordered the billboards removed on the grounds that they oppose the messages of faithfulness that the government is trying to promote.

“It’s totally unacceptable. It’s a wrong message. They are confusing people on which HIV prevention messages to follow,” said Mr David Apuuli Kihumuro, the director general of the UAC.

“I have talked to them [AHF]. I have directed them to remove all their billboards. They didn’t consult us or the Ministry of Health.”

He added: “We are going to talk to the Uganda Communications Commission to regulate such messages and campaigns in the media and public. They shouldn’t be allowed. We need messages that encourage people to live faithfully and live [HIV] negatively.”

But Ms Nakawuka said: “We have some issues with UAC, which [we] are sorting out.”

Health Minister Christine Ondoa said the national HIV prevention strategy continues to embrace ‘ABC’ - a prescription for Abstinence, Being faithful, and consistent and correct Condom use - as well as an array of biomedical interventions.

Ministry to investigate

She said her ministry would be investigating “why they [AHF] jumped to C”.

The ABC strategy was largely credited for reducing HIV prevalence from 18 per cent in the early 1990s to about six per cent in 2000.

However, since then, prevalence has begun to rise again, going from 6.4 per cent in 2005 to 7.3 per cent in 2011, according to the most recent Aids Indicator Survey.

Despite years of HIV prevention messages, condom use remains erratic.

The government has in the past been accused of bowing to pressure from the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief, which encouraged HIV messages to focus more on abstinence and fidelity and less on condom use.

Traditionally, government-backed HIV prevention campaigns targeting couples have focused on less controversial messages such as faithfulness and getting tested.

A 2010 review of couples-focused behavioural HIV-prevention interventions found that while these interventions can reduce unprotected sexual intercourse, there is a need for “stronger theoretical and methodological basis for couples-focused HIV prevention”.

The authors also recommended that future interventions “pay closer attention to same-sex couples, adolescents and young people in relationships”.

The “cheating” billboard has stirred intense debate both on the streets of Kampala and on social media networks; many hold the view that the campaign’s message is tantamount to encouraging infidelity, while others see it as a pragmatic approach to HIV prevention.

“What is their moral motive? I can assure you, it’s absolutely wrong and inappropriate to erect such campaign billboards,” said Ms Christine Shimanya, an associate vicar at Church of Resurrection, Bugolobi Church of Uganda.

Condemnation from church

“If couples have gone off their marriages, the most appropriate intervention is by talking to them, not encouraging cheating. We need Christian post-marital counselling to help them in their morals.”

But a number of Ugandans say the campaign is a welcome shot in the arm for the country’s flagging HIV-prevention efforts.

Ms Florence Buluba, the executive director of the National Community of Women Living with Aids, said the campaign’s emphasis on condom use was necessary.

“If we are to prevent new HIV infections in Uganda, those who cheat and engage in risky sexual behaviours should use condoms, especially if [they] don’t know the other person’s.

Thursday 24 January 2013

Creflo Dollar is done; assault charge dropped


Creflo Dollar is done; assault charge dropped

Dollar is done; assault charge dropped


Wednesday, January 23, 2013 - 3:32pm

Submitted by John Munford

Megachurch pastor Creflo Dollar managed to avoid a court appearance on charges that he assaulted his 15-year-old daughter in the family’s Sandy Creek Road home June 7.

Instead, state court prosecutors allowed Dollar to enter a pre-trial intervention program which required him to complete an anger management program and pay $1,072 in fees and court costs.

By using the pre-trial intervention program, Dollar avoided court and was not required to even enter a plea in the case. He was initially charged with simple battery (family violence), but that charge has been dismissed since Dollar successfully met the requirements of the pre-trial intervention program.

During the three-month length of the program, Dollar was required to report to a probation officer and avoid violent contact with anyone. He also was ordered to not violate any laws during that time frame, and he incurred no new charges during the three months, according to a report by the probation officer.

Dollar, the pastor at World Changers Church International, was initially arrested on charges of simple battery and cruelty to children. Dollar’s daughter told a sheriff’s deputy that her father had put his hands around her throat and choked her, then “slammed her to the ground and began punching her and took his shoe off and started whooping her with it,” according to a report from the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office.

The deputy noted that he observed a scratch on the right side of the girl’s neck close to her throat. The dispute between the daughter and Dollar was over a party the girl wanted to attend.

Dollar told deputies that his daughter became very disrespectful and he approached her and tried to restrain her while she hit back and he wrestled her to the floor. Dollar further said that while on the floor he spanked her on her bottom and the back of her legs, and after the victim calmed down she was advised to go to her room.

A witness to the incident claimed that Dollar slapped the victim and put both his hands around her neck, choking her for about five seconds. The witness said the victim tried to break free but did not fight back, and after Dollar threw her to the ground the witness went to get the 15-year-old’s mother.

State Court Solicitor Jamie K. Inagawa said he reviewed the evidence and interviewed the victim before determining the case met the criteria for pre-trial intervention.

“As a prosecutor it is my job to strike the appropriate balance of punishment and rehabilitation in every case I handle,” Inagawa said. “I feel that my office has accomplished just such a balance in this case. The defendant has been punished for his actions, concerns for his possible re-offending have been addressed and the family unit has been preserved.”

Inagawa noted that Dollar proved he complied with all the conditions of the program.

Dollar’s World Changers Church International is headquartered in College Park but has 16 satellite churches in seven states. He also heads up Creflo Dollar Ministries which has offices in Australia, South Africa, Nigeria and the United Kingdom, according to creflodollarministries.org.

Wednesday 23 January 2013

Benny Hinn's brother accused of extramarital affair



Benny Hinn's brother accused of extramarital affair


5:23 p.m. EST, January 21, 2013
Sanford Pastor Sam Hinn engaged in a four-year love affair with a member of his congregation before being confronted by his wife and church officials, prompting him to step away from the pulpit, according to the woman's family.

Chantel Wonder said Hinn, the younger brother of televangelist Benny Hinn, initiated the affair with her mother by telling her they were "soul mates" and that God approved of the relationship.

"He put her in a position that this is OK because it's what God wants. He was using God to justify it," said Wonder, 28, of St. Petersburg.

Hinn, 51, founded The Gathering Place Worship Center in 1996, about five years before Wonder's family joined.

Messages left on Hinn's home phone were not returned. Church officials responded to requests for comment with a copy of the letter Hinn wrote to his congregation, which says:

"As painful as this is to confess, I have allowed myself to be drawn into a relationship that has caused much hurt and pain to my wife and family. I have repented and asked for and received their forgiveness."

Wonder said her father became aware of the affair in December 2008 after he found text and voice messages from Hinn on his wife's phone. At the time, his wife denied the affair. The couple, who were married June 20, 1980, divorced on Feb. 14, 2012.

Wonder said Hinn, who is married and has four children, continued the affair after her parents divorced. She said church officials confronted Hinn with evidence of the affair in December 2012, but he refused to admit he was involved with the woman.

On Jan. 14, Hinn denied the allegations of an affair to his wife, but promised not to talk to the woman again, Wonder said. Later the same day, she said, Hinn's car was photographed parked outside her mother's apartment.

On Wednesday, church officials read Hinn's letter to the congregation, in which he says, "…I am taking a leave of absence from any and all ministry so I can focus my full energy on both my walk with God and restoration in my family."

Church officials also released a statement that the board has initiated a restoration process for Hinn that involves the counsel of Ron Johnson, pastor of One Church in Longwood.

"This process includes Pastoral and Professional Counseling, as well as a mandatory time out of ministry so that all factures in both his personal and family life may be healed," the statement says.

Chantel Wonder said this isn't enough.

"He'll be back in a couple of months as senior pastor, and that's just not right," said Wonder, who fears the church will shift all the blame on her mother.

Wonder said both her parents were involved in church activities. Her father was an usher and both were engaged in Bible study.

Her mother, who works as a hairstylist, eventually become the stylist for Hinn's family, including his wife and children, Wonder said.

Hinn is the latest in a series of high-profile pastors of large nondenominational churches in Central Florida who have become embroiled in extramarital affairs. In November, Isaac Hunter, son of megapastor Joel Hunter, stepped down from the Orlando church he founded, Summit Church, after admitting to an affair with a staff member.

New Destiny Christian Center pastor Zachery Tims left his Apopka church for a time after getting caught in an extramarital affair around 2009. Tims returned to the church, but died suddenly of causes still not disclosed in a New York City hotel room in August 2011.

In all three cases, the churches were creations of their dynamic lead pastors. Experts in church dynamics say when churches lose their founding pastors, it often creates a crisis of direction and confidence, even when they return.


 Pastor Sam Hinn

Pastor and Author Sam Hinn Steps Down From Pulpit

http://www.charismanews.com/us/35331-pastor-and-author-sam-hinn-steps-down-from-pulpit

2:00PM EST 1/22/2013 Elizabeth Sanchez

Sam Hinn has stepped down as pastor of the Gathering Place Worship Center in Sanford, Fla., the church he founded in 1996. The 51-year-old pastor took the action to begin a restoration process as the result of "being drawn into a relationship that has caused much pain."

Hinn is the younger brother of Evangelist Benny Hinn, under whom he served when the elder Hinn pastored World Outreach Center in nearby Orlando for 14 years.

The Gathering Place Worship Center holds two morning services attended by about 300 people each, plus a small Arabic service on Sunday afternoon, The Orlando Sentinel reported Sunday.

A letter from Pastor Hinn, read at the Wednesday night service January 16, did not state his reason for stepping down but said, "I take full responsibility for the place we now find ourselves. As painful as this is to confess, I have allowed myself to be drawn into a relationship that has caused much hurt and pain to my wife and family. I have repented and asked for and received their forgiveness. Scripture states that I must bring forth the fruit of repentance if I expect to be restored..."

The statement was also read to the congregation on Sunday. To read the entire statement, click here.

The Gathering Place's board said it is "deeply saddened" by the recent news but pointed to Galatians 6:1 as a guideline for restoration: "Pastor Sam Hinn has been relieved of all ministry responsibilities and as the official board, we have outlined a restoration process. This process includes pastoral and professional counseling, as well as a mandatory time out of ministry so that all fractures in both his personal and family life may be healed." Click here to read the entire statement.

Pastor Ron Johnson, of One Church (Assembly of God) in nearby Longwood, was asked by the church board to oversee the restoration process. Johnson appointed Theo Koulianos, a member of The Gathering Place's pastoral staff, to fill the pulpit.

The Gathering Place is known locally for its lively concert-style worship. It attracts many young people and has a large Hispanic segment among the congregation. Because Hinn was born in Israel and because his mother, who was a part of the church spoke Arabic, the church has held an Arabic service for many years. The Gathering Place describes itself as a church about “family, worship and the presence of God.”

Hinn is the author of two books: Kissing the Face of God and Changed in His Presence. He and his wife Erika have been married for more than 25 years and have four children.

Hinn had also served as an interim pastor at Heartland Church in Dallas, Texas of time while its founding pastor Steve Hill was battling cancer. Hill has now returned to the pulpit.

"He was a blessing in my absence," Hill told Charisma News. "We read the letter to our church on Sunday and prayed for Pastor Sam, The Gathering Place, and the Hinn family. There is nothing but love and appreciation coming from Heartland. I love him and believe the Lord will totally restore."

Pastor Sam Hinn Speaks Out on 'Relationship That Has Caused Much Hurt' to Family

http://www.charismanews.com/us/35325-pastor-sam-hinn-speaks-out-on-relationship-that-has-caused-much-hurt-to-family

9:47AM EST 1/22/2013
Here is the statement from Sam Hinn that was read to the congregation of The Gathering Place Worship Center on Sunday, Jan. 20:


"After much soul searching I have come to the understanding that I need to take a break from the ministry. Erika and I have been aware, for some time, that there have been fractures developing in our marriage that must be addressed.


"Although neither Erika nor I have ever claimed perfection, this morning I take full responsibility for the place we now find ourselves. As painful as this is to confess, I have allowed myself to be drawn into a relationship that has caused much hurt and pain to my wife and family. I have repented and asked for and received their forgiveness.


"The Scripture states that I must bring fort the fruit of repentance if I expect to be restored; therefore, I have submitted myself to leadership of this Church and the Apostolic covering of Pastor Ron Johnson of One Church.


"Therefore, I am taking a leave of absence from any and all ministry so I can focus my full energy on both my walk with God and restoration in my family.


"TGP, I love you all very much and apologize for hurting you. I ask that you please pray for my family during this difficult season and I ask you to stand with us as we take this much needed time to heal.


"With the support of my family and help of those around me, it is my full intention to be fully restored and return to my responsibilities as your pastor, as soon as the Lord permits.


"Please respect the privacy of our family during this difficult time."




Book publisher says televangelist Benny Hinn violated morality clause

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/os-benny-hinn-book-suit-20110217,0,3978261.story

Strang Communications wants $250,000.




5:58 p.m. EST, February 17, 2011

SANFORD - A Lake Mary book publisher is suing televangelist and faith healer Benny Hinn, saying he violated a morality clause in their contract when he began an "inappropriate relationship" with another evangelist, and thus, must pay $250,000.


In August, Hinn admitted to a friendship with evangelist Paula White after The National Enquirer published photos of them in Rome, holding hands.


Hinn was married at the time. His wife, Suzanne, had filed for divorce a few months earlier.


Three years earlier, Hinn had signed a three-book deal with Strang Communications Co. of Lake Mary. He was paid a $300,000 advance on the first one, "Blood in the Sand," according to the suit.


Hinn acknowledged to his publisher "his inappropriate relationship" with White in August, according to the suit, and agreed that the publisher should get back its money, but he has yet to pay up.


Hinn's lawyer, Miles Archer Woodlief of Mill Valley, Calif., did not return a phone call Thursday.


In a letter attached to the suit, Strang also accused Hinn of violated the contract by failing to work hard enough to market "Blood in the Sand".


He failed to make television appearances to promote it, including several on "700 Club", wrote Strang attorney Chris Vlahos.


The suit was filed Tuesday in state circuit court.