The church
By Deji Ariyo
(with Agency reports)
Oyo State Government at the weekend wielded the big axe and shut down the Christ Life Church located in Golden Estate, Oluyole, in the Ibadan South-West Local Government Area of the state.
Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Abdulmojeed Mogbonjubola said the action became imperative, following several unresolved steps taken by the ministry to mediate among the complainants, residents, and the church’s management.
“The state government was left with no other option but to seal the church premises to avert preventable escalations of brewing tensions between the residents and the church on Sunday,” he said.
Mogbonjubola stressed that officials of the ministry visited the area, on Thursday, November 9, 2023, following several complaints about the church from residents over incessant noise.
Gov. Seyi Makinde
“The team recorded the sound level of the church activities at intervals, starting from praise and worship, with an average reading of 74 decibels.
“The action of the church contravened the Extant Environmental Regulations of 2023, Section 58, paragraph (b) which states that the noise limits for residential areas at daytime must not exceed 65 decibels.
“A resolution meeting was held with the parties in the ministry’s conference room on November 29, 2023, where the church refused to sign the undertaking letter, with the excuse to get approval from its headquarters and report back on Monday, December 4, 2023. The state government decided to seal the church due to the continued disobedience to the regulations,” the Commissioner said.