The family of the pastor who allegedly committed suicide in Anambra state, has refuted claims that he took his own life after being jilted by his girlfriend.
Recall that the deceased, identified as Pastor Prosper Igboke, who was pastoring a Pentecostal church in Nnewi, Anambra state, was said to have ended it all after his girlfriend turned down his marriage proposal, despite sponsoring her university education.
He was reported to have jumped down from a two-storey building and died on the spot. A relative, who confirmed the incident, said, “The incident happened last month. The man (Igboke) was 30 years old at the time of his death. His girlfriend, whom he intended to marry disappointed him after seeing her through the university.
He jumped down from a two-storey building and died. I am surprised that a man of this age and a pastor can do this.”
The relative also revealed that the clergyman, from Leru community in Umunneochi Local Government Area, Abia State, was buried in a forest for committing a ‘sacrilegious’ act according to their village tradition.
However, a maternal cousin of the deceased, Promise Ikpe, took to his Facebook page last Saturday to debunk the viral report, while revealing the circumstances surrounding his death.
Ikpe stated that Igboke didn’t kill himself because of his girlfriend, but was battling with some mental issues, which he suddenly developed after a ministration.
“I did this post to correct some of the false narratives flying around.”
“This is the report of what happened prior to his death.
“Prosper went for a ministration in Nnewi, and when he came back, he had lost his senses, he wasn’t mentally coordinated.
“No one knew why. His pastor locked him up and asked some people to watch over him while he went to a meeting instead of taking him to a hospital to find out why he wasn’t mentally coordinated.
“Prosper jumped from the window of the room he was locked in
“His pastor refused to give us his phone to investigate what happened to date. Pastor said Prosper had gifted him the phone.”
Another cousin of the deceased, Chikwendu Anugba, also took to his Facebook page to set the record straight.
He wrote:
“Blogs went to market with the story that Obum committed suicide because he was jilted by his girlfriend who he trained in the university.
“I was wondering when he became rich and we didn’t know. Because the story did fit into certain narratives, the agendaists picked it up and ran without looking back. They said he committed suicide because of heartbreak. Meanwhile, the poor girl they maligned stood with the family in the time of grief.
“He was buried in our farmlands not because he committed suicide. But because in our tradition, it’s seen as an abomination for parents to bury their children.
“It is the duty of children to bury their parents. When a single man or woman dies, the corpse is buried far from the village so the grave won’t be a source of grief for his parents.”
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