So a man of God in Delta State decided to walk into a shrine and destroy it to prove that the gods were false.
He probably thought nothing would happen.
Well… something happened. The matter landed in court.
According to reports, the Federal High Court sitting in Warri held that his actions violated the constitutional right of the shrine’s worshippers to freedom of religion.
The matter ended up in court.
The court held that the action was unconstitutional and violated the worshippers’ fundamental right to freedom of religion under Section 38 of the 1999 Constitution. The court also found it inconsistent with Section 10, which provides that no government shall adopt any religion as State religion.
As a result, the court ordered the pastor to:
✅ Rebuild the destroyed Egbesu shrine.
✅ Pay ₦100 million as general damages.
✅ Pay ₦100 million as exemplary damages.
✅ Pay ₦5 million as costs.
✅ Publish a public apology in two national newspapers.
✅ Stay at least 10 kilometres away from the worshippers.
Whether you are a Christian, Muslim, traditional worshipper or belong to any other religion, the Constitution protects your freedom to practise your religion.
You are free to preach your faith and try to convince others to join you, but you are not free to destroy another person’s place of worship because you disagree with their beliefs or because you want to prove your God is superior.
