“Many churches do not have basic Financial Management Skills” -Sam Adeyemi

The Senior Pastor of Daystar Christian Centre in Lagos, Sam Adeyemi, on Monday said that most churches in the country were financially stranded due t0 lack of financial management skills by their leaders.

Speaking at a news conference organized by the Christian Financial Accountability Association (CFAA) in Lagos, Adeyemi said that many churches spent money without proper monitoring and records.

“When people say churches have money, it is propaganda. At least 75 per cent of churches have less than 100 members.

“It is very little money they manage and out of that little money, they take care of widows and people who do not have.

“Most of the leaders of these churches don’t have financial management skills,” he said.

Adeyemi said CFAA was dedicated to helping these Christian organizations to facilitate financial accountability, ethical and governance standards.

“When these organisations are helped, even their finances will be better,” he said.

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Also speaking, Mr Yinka Ogunubi, a financial expert and economist, said that the objective of CFAA was to ensure that churches ensure accountability, transparency and good governance.

“The church in Nigeria has always been instrumental in the country’s development.

“The issues we are going to be looking at are issues that are germane, which are based on accountability, transparency and governance.

“The CFAA is a self regulating organisation made up of churches and Christian faith-based organisations that will promote ethics of accountability, transparency and governance,” he said.

Ogunubi who said no church would oppose accountability, adding that championing the course of Christianity and being accountable worked together.

“You cannot say you are championing the course of Christianity and at the same time you are afraid of being accountable,” he said.

He added that the conference was to lay the foundation, assuring everyone that the organization would be run by professionals.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that CFAA would focus on education and enlightenment on corporate governance and accountability.

“Its end goal is to help churches become more effective and also comply with the mandatory government regulations,” he said.