Opinion
By Valentine Obienyem
WHY does everyone seem to support the current crackdown on “Okeite dibias” and miracle-mongering pastors? The widespread, silent approval from the public reveals the sheer depth of the damage these figures have inflicted on society.
More than two thousand years ago, the Roman philosopher Lucretius observed this exact danger when he wrote, “Tantum religio potuit suadere malorum” – “So great are the evils to which religion can persuade men.” His point was not that all religion is inherently evil, but that when faith becomes entirely detached from reason, it drives people to embrace absurdities, surrender their judgment, and walk blindly into manipulation.
The operational blueprint for fake “dibias” and predatory pastors is identical. They rely entirely on probability masquerading as prophecy.
If a fraudulent “dibia” performs the “Okeite” ritual for fifty people, statistical probability dictates that two or three of them will naturally experience a financial breakthrough during that period. These few will inevitably attribute their good fortune to the ritual, creating a powerful illusion of success.
If they do “juju” for 100 people to travel with drugs to other countries and, by sheer good luck, two are successful, the testimony or story of those two will go round, prompting more customers, when in truth over 99% of those for whom he performed the same “juju” are languishing in foreign prisons.
Similarly, when a dubious pastor prays for one hundred women struggling with infertility, biological chance ensures that a small percentage will conceive within the year. What follows is a highly publicized testimony. Hearing these isolated stories, an outsider is easily misled into believing that “everyone” who received prayers achieved the same result. This is pure psychology.
Consider a pastor who distributes a small amount of money to two hundred followers to add to their businesses. If five of those individuals succeed – as would naturally occur in any random sampling of entrepreneurs – they will return to the altar to donate millions. They will testify that their breakthrough occurred the exact moment the pastor’s “blessed” money touched their enterprise.
The unfortunate sequel is that one observes fully grown men and women committing millions – enough to sustain viable businesses – to rituals and prayers intended to make money. This is the ecclesiastical correlate to the contemporary 419.
The current public backlash against these fake (We still have some genuine ones) miracle merchants and self-styled spiritual entrepreneurs suggests a collective awakening. People are finally recognizing how fear, superstition, and the seductive promise of supernatural shortcuts have been weaponized for personal gain.
However, the problem is not confined to a single group of pastors or a specific religious tradition. The deeper malaise is a culture of uncritical belief that allows charlatans to thrive. Until we learn to question extraordinary claims and demand empirical evidence rather than emotional assertions, the cycle will continue. New miracle workers will simply rise from the ashes of the old ones.
A.I
June 15, 2026
Tags: “Okeite dibias” Valentine Obienyem