David Ibiyeomie is a Nigerian pastor, author,

televangelist Televangelism (wikt:tele-, tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning "Christian ministry, ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are minister ...

and the founder/presiding pastor of Salvation Ministries with its headquarters located in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria.

Early life

On October 21, 1962, David Ibiyeomie was born in Bonny Island, Rivers State, Nigeria. He is a native of Bolo Town in Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area of Rivers state.

Education

David Ibiyeomie attended Banham Primary School and Government Comprehensive Secondary School Borikiri, all in Rivers State for his primary and secondary education. In 1980, he enrolled into the University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt.

Training

In 1995 Ibiyeomie enrolled into full time Bible School in the Word of Faith Bible Institute, an arm of

David Oyedepo David Olaniyi Oyedepo (born 27 September 1954) is a Nigerian preacher, Christian author, businessman, architect and the founder of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, and presiding Bishop of the Faith Tabernacle in Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria. The ...

’s Ministry. Ibiyeomie started Salvation Ministries on Sunday April 13, 1997 with 34 persons in attendance.

Career

After completing his Bible School training at Bishop David Oyedepo's Word of Faith Bible Institute (WOFBI), Ibiyeomie started a house fellowship with his family in

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Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

; he later moved to Port Harcourt,

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

, where he started Salvation Ministries (Glorious Chapel) on April 13, 1997, with a little over twenty members in attendance. In July 1997, the church relocated to a larger plot of land. As of 2017, Salvation Ministries averages about 50,000 attendees every Sunday at its headquarters. In February 2011, Salvation Ministries started 14 satellite churches in one day, with all running five services each.

Ministry

Through his television ministry ''Hour of Salvation'' and live services, David Ibiyeomie reaches millions of worshippers. The Hour of Salvation TV programme started on

NTA NTA may refer to: * Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis, a method for visualizing and analyzing particles * National Tax Agency, the official tax collecting agency of Japan * National Tax Association, a non-profit organization in United States * Nati ...

channel 10 Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria in 2001 and currently runs on over 40 television stations both locally and internationally. He is an author and hosts an internet radio show. In 2010, he began construction of a 120,000 seat temple.

Controversies

Ibiyeomie has been controversial on multiple occasions. In January 2017, Ibiyeomie was alleged to have made prejudiced comments against the

Ogoni people The Ogonis are a people in the Rivers South East senatorial district of Rivers State, in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. They number just over 2 million and live in a homeland which they also refer to as Ogoniland. They share common ...

, leading the

Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), is a social movement organization representing the indigenous Ogoni people of Rivers State, Nigeria. The Ogoni contend that Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), along with othe ...

to demand that he apologise. In March 2017, journalist

Kemi Omololu-Olunloyo Olukemi Omololu-Olunloyo (born 6 August 1964) is a Nigerian journalist, blogger, and activist against gun violence, and a social media personality. She is well known within the Nigerian online community, especially for making highly disputed and ...

alleged that Ibiyeomie was having an affair with

Nollywood Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in ''The New York Times''. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there ...

actress

Iyabo Ojo Alice Iyabo Ojo (born 21 December 1977) is a Nigerian film actress,director, and producer.

. Olunloyo was subsequently arrested and refused bail for

defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

. However she has been released. Ibiyeomie strongly denied the allegations.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ibiyeomie, David 1962 births Living people People from Bonny Nigerian Christian clergy Rivers State University alumni Nigerian Pentecostal pastors