Delivered severally by God but rather chose to remain bound, the story of Pastor Mark Chukwudi Etiti of Victory Pentecostal Church Ogbaku in Mbaitolu L.G.A of Imo State. A secondary school dropout and redeemed wheelbarrow pusher turned pastor. The story of this self acclaimed man of God who hails from Agwa in Oguta, LGA of Imo State is one that elicits so many thoughts about the biblical end time and the rise of so many devil’s incarnate in the guise of Pastors whose sole aim is to deceive and defraud at every given opportunity.
The story of Pastor Mark and his unfortunate wife Perpetua Udoka dates back to February 2000. Udoka who commenced a bright career in banking in a small town called Ogbaku near Owerri in Imo State innocently confided in a brother in the church who incidentally was the leader of the prayer squad of their local church at a time.She solicited for the face of God concerning her proposals from three suitors who were seriously asking for her hand in marriage, a medical doctor, a fellow banker and a public servant. Her genuine intention was for this brother to join hands with her to seek for God’s intervention to enable her make the very best of decision.
Unknown to her, she had just had a date with the very devil she’s intending to avoid. Pastor Mark who was supposedly expected to hear from God for onward transmission to Udoka could not help but fraudulently take advantage of the situation. In his criminal revelation to sister Udoka who waited earnestly for the solemn voice of God, he quietly muted in such a shameless display of authority weeks after that God has changed everything. “Initially, the banker was the one, but God has seen that marrying him won’t allow you serve him the way he wants you to and so he changed it.” he said. Who then is the one? Your curiosity is as high as mine. In his tactical measure of deceit, summoning the guts and clearing the air to weed off suspicion, he replied “I’m sure it will be difficult for you to accept, but certainly God has spoken” I’m the one.
Was it a bitter pill to swallow? Yes it was. This no doubt instigated a lot of dust. For Udoka’s family, it was a no no particularly considering pastor Mark’s educational background and social status. What does the young man do for a living? How does he intend to sustain a family, How will he cope with the family members and all sort of questions made the choice process a herculean task for Udoka. But for her, since God has supposedly spoken, she would be sure she’s making the right choice and to cut the long story short, her families were convinced. They all came out supported and fully sponsored the wedding ceremony.
Unknown to Udoka, the biggest attraction was her lucrative career at the time. Just within a space of twenty months, a car was bought, a landed property and a shop was paid for all in the name of the husband Pastor Mark Chukwudi Etiti. Udoka built a house for her Pastor husband on bank loan. She did a lot both for the husband’s family and the husband himself on loans including borrowing money on behalf of the husband to the extent that repayments become a serious challenge and she ultimately lost the bank job.
It became a pitiable situation better imagined, after she lost her job. Udoka became a punching bag. On many occasions, the mother in-law will come all the way from the village to order Udoka out of the very house she built. Udoka had sustained various degrees of injuries inflicted on her by the same husband she picked from the gutters. She was hospitalized severally. The mother in-law had once threatened that it is either Udoka leaves the son alive or the deceased body will be carted away like nobody and her threat came to pass after all. Udoka’s thirteen year old daughter had once reported to the police of how the father had bitten the mum to stupor on the fear that the mum was dead.
The first brutal cutlass injuries on Udoka were recorded in 2013. This time, Udoka’s family thought it was indeed enough. The matter was formally taken to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Nigerian Police in Owerri, who documented the evidences, detained the pastor and later released him. The family has actually concluded plans to forcefully relocate her and her children after so many refusals from her before the brutal murder of Udoka by the same man who she gave three beautiful children. “Is he insane”, the police commissioner asked in bloated anger. “To the best of my knowledge he’s not” Udoka’s brother replied.
On that faithful day, My mummy in her usual manner, woke up around 5.00am,got us ready for school, gave us our food, asked me to take my younger sister to her school and return the key to her in the church, while she left for our church early morning prayer session. I finished dressing up and told my daddy who was in his room that I’m off to school. He asked me to lock the gate to our house from outside and I asked why and he shouted me down. I did exactly that and returned the key to my mum in the church. I went back to my mummy’s shop around 1:00pm and could not meet her in the shop. That was unusual knowing fully well when we usually come back from school. I called her line and she was not picking. I asked her neighbors and they said she told them my daddy called her. I then took my siblings along to the house. On getting to the house, every place looked deserted. We usually access the house through the kitchen door, but that faithful day, the kitchen door was locked. I called my dad to ask him if he has seen mummy. He asked me where we are and I said we are at home and the doors were all locked. Within 2 minutes, daddy appeared. Unusual of daddy, he decided to follow the back door instead of the usual front kitchen door and asked me to stay outside. I could not comprehend my father’s body language and I quickly followed him and went straight to my mum’s room while he made his way to his room. The sight of flowing blood in mummy’s room got me more frightened and when I shouted blood, my dad ran straight to the kitchen where my mum’s body was used to block the kitchen door, the same door my daddy strategically avoided on entering the compound. I later saw my mum’s phone near the kitchen window with my daddy’s 3 missed calls on the phone. The daughter explained.
“My mother does not owe anybody. My mum does not have any problem with anybody. My daddy has always been chasing us about with cutlass all the time. He has severally threatened to kill mummy and her people won’t do anything. The last time, I thought my mummy was dead when she was brutally beaten with cutlass by my daddy and blood was gushing like water. I called my uncle and he was not responding. I then went to police to report him and he was arrested. Two days before he killed mummy, I saw him from the bathe room cutting the ceiling of our house. The following morning, I heard him telling my mother that armed robbers came to the house and that the entered through the ceiling. He was showing mummy the note he claimed the brought which read “Pastor Mark be careful, this is to tell you we can come and go”. I told mummy that I saw dad cutting that place two days back and was not done by any armed robber. I told mummy we should go to my anti’s place that dad is up to something but mummy refused. Now look at where she has brought us to. Daddy has simply fulfilled his wish and God will judge him”. She laments.
Answering to the Imo state Police Command who has gathered all their evidences and have charge him to court, the unrepentant pastor murderer insisted that nobody can ever tolerate his kind of wife. According to him, he said he’s not sure any super man can live with his wife for the number of years he did.
Pastor Mark who is cooling off in the prison and waiting for the judgment day is known for machete violence. He consistently boasted of how he had chopped off somebody’s arm back in his village for insulting the mother. He severally inflicted cutlass injuries on the late father’s body and has constantly chased his sister away from the house with cutlass. Like the proverbial saying that he that kills with cutlass shall die through the cutlass, will that be Pastor Mark Chukwudi Etiti’s lot. This is left to the Nigeria Judicial system and the Nigeria Police.
