Pastor Tunde Bakare Defends Self After Being Criticized For Holding #BringBackOurGirls Campaign Banner With A Smile

Serving overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, and Convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG) Pastor Tunde Bakare has explained that he smiled over the prolonged hostage-status of more than 200 schools girls abducted from their school in Chibok, Borno State - because he trusts that God is greater than the dreaded Boko Haram sect and Nigeria's Federal Government.

Pastor Bakare was responding to online criticisms on why he had to smile over worrisome issue of terrorism in a photograph that was shared on the social media today.

In the photograph, Pastor Bakare displayed a banner in support of the campaign calling on the Nigerian government to rescue the abducted school girls.

The banner has the inscription "Rescue Our Girls Now!", a campaign by the Women Arise movement, led by prominent Nigerian female activist, Joe Okei-Odumakin.

"I smiled because God is bigger than Boko Haram and the Federal Government of Nigeria. He is in heaven and us on earth," said the radical preacher.

"To the question why do the heathen rage and why do they imagine vain things, the Kings of the earth plot together against the Lord and against His anointed. God's answer in Psalm 2 will shock you. It says he that the siteth in Heaven shall laugh, and that was my posture in the photo," he further stated.

Then he added; 'Where God cannot rule, He will over rule."

Over 200 school girls were abducted from their dormitory in Chibok, Borno State, more than four months ago. Citizens and Civil Society organisations had since been mounting pressures and calling on Federal Government to rescue the victims. Although the Federal Government had earlier denied any girls were abducted in Chibok as widely reported, President Jonathan later acknowledged it after the dreaded sect itself broadcast a video claiming responsibility with threats to sell off the girls.

Almost five months on, apart from some of the victims who returned home on their own ingenuity and luck, all of the abducted girls are still being held captive by Boko Haram terrorists. Even so, more boys and women had been abducted after the Chibok girls incident.

Out of the various protests by citizens and social media campaigns regarding plight of the abducted girls, several social media hashtags emerged. Some of the hashtags are #BringBackOurGirls #RescueOurGirlsNow #SpeakAgainstTerror #NigeriansAgainstTerror
#EndTerror and many more.