Paul Idoko Eneche

Paul Idoko Eneche, an Idoma tribesman was born in Orokam, Benue State in 1968 to chief D.E (father) and Titi Enewa (mother). His father was a paramount ruler of the Orokam District in the Ogbadibo Local Government Area.[14] Eneche was raised alongside four other siblings including Major General John Eneche a former Nigerian Deference spokesman. He studied medicine at the University of Jos before proceeding to Nigeria Medical School where he earned a license to practice.[14]

Upon graduation, Eneche started practicing as a medical doctor but was not satisfied with his medical practice. On 28 May 1996, he went to the mountains in Gana Ropp, Barkin Ladi[15] where he was alone for three days fasting and praying to seek clarification from God on his calling.[16][17] While on the mountain, his wife Becky (also a medical doctor) who was nursing their first child at the time, also prayed alongside her husband for a confirmation of the calling. At the end of the three days prayer, it became clear to him that he has been called into gospel ministry. Eneche and his wife gave up their medical practice, three bedrooms official quarters given to each of them, salaries and other official benefits to start the ministry.[2]

Eneche is known for using his sermons to criticize politicians and government on national policy issues. In 2018, Eneche in a sermon in his church narrated media reports detailing how the Kaduna State governor Nasir El Rufai summoned Christian chiefs in the state to his office and ordered them to subjugate their chiefdom to emirates - a title used by monarchs or high officeholders in the Muslim world. A first-class Christian monarch, Agom Adara, Maiwada Galadima[21] who was vocal in opposition to the order of the governor was kidnapped along with his wife on his way home from the meeting. After payment of a ransom for the release of the couple, his wife was freed three days later but Maiwada Galadima was brutally murdered despite the ransom. Eneche stated that the killing of the monarch who was the leading voice against the governor's order of subjugation was suspicious and called on the state to investigate and prosecute the killers of the monarch.[22] Video clip of the sermon went viral  but the governor of Kaduna State labelled it inciting sermon and reported Eneche to the Inspector General Police to arrest, investigate and prosecute him.[6][23][24]

In the lead up to the 2023 Nigerian presidential election, Eneche was vocal in his criticism of the ruling APC’s same faith (Muslim presidential and Muslim vice presidential) ticket of the party in a country evenly divided between Christians and Muslims and polarized along religious lines. He campaigned vigorously for the opposition candidate Perter Obi of the Labour Party.[25][26] On 26 February, a day after the presidential election, Eneche in a sermon in his church criticized security agencies for overlooking violence perpetrated in opposition strongholds during voting and called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be transparent in the collation of results.[27] Eneche then invoked the anger of God to befall anyone who manipulates the results of the election. On 28 February, APC presidential campaign organization spokesman Dele Alake convened a world press conference during which he termed the statement of Eneche a call to anarchy and asked the Department of State Security Service (DSS) and the police to arrest, investigate and prosecute him for hate speech.[28][11][29] The call for the arrest of Eneche was opposed by several civil society organizations stating that asking authorities to play by the rule was not an inciting comment.[30][31]