When “acting like Jesus Christ” is criminalised: Announcing a Donation of N250,000 to Tomi Akporoghene Wujuola
By Frank Tietie
A man, Tomi Akporoghene Wojuola, acted out the most basic command of Jesus Christ, which is love for one’s neighbour. He stopped to help a dying man by the roadside in Asaba. That man later died. For this act of mercy, Wojuola was humiliated, threatened, and framed for murder by a Divisional Police Officer, Christopher Udoh, who reportedly told him he would be punished for “acting like Jesus Christ.”
If this account does not trouble the conscience of every Christian leader in Nigeria, then we must ask ourselves: what exactly are we preaching?
Christianity is not a branding exercise. It is not a survival industry. It is not a marketplace where the name of Jesus is traded for offerings, tithes, and personal comfort in exchange for blessings of promotion and protection. Christianity is a faith rooted in sacrifice, courage, and public identification with truth even when it is inconvenient. Yet, when a man is persecuted for embodying Christ’s love, too many Christians look away.
It amounts to failure of Christian leadership when associations like the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), even though they are trying their best, fail to realise that they were not formed merely to issue press statements about mundane issues of politics and matters of national concern. They exist primarily to protect Christians in the public space, especially when the Christian faith itself is being criminalised, as in the case of Wujuola.
This is not a “small issue.” It strikes at the root of a growing hostility toward Christian values in everyday life. When kindness becomes suspicious, when compassion is treated as a crime, and when helping the vulnerable attracts state-sanctioned intimidation, then religion, including Christianity itself, is under assault.
CAN must immediately petition the Police Service Commission (PSC) to ensure that CSP Christopher Udoh (also referred to as Odoh) is not merely redeployed but disciplined in accordance with the law. Redeployment is not justice. There should be accountability.
Christians are told that persecution will come. That is true. However, it is irresponsible and indeed foolish to accept unjust suffering when lawful remedies are available. Turning the other cheek does not mean surrendering the rule of law to wickedness.
I personally commend the Delta State Police Command and the Commissioner of Police, CP Aina Adesola, for acting swiftly to remove the DPO from his position. That intervention restored some confidence that decency still exists within the system.
However, the process of disciplining must go further. A police officer who threatens a citizen for “acting like Jesus Christ” has no business wearing the uniform of the Nigeria Police Force.
My organisation, the Citizens Advocacy for Social and Economic Rights (CASER), will monitor the disciplinary process closely to ensure that this case does not quietly disappear into bureaucratic darkness.
As a mark of standing with the persecuted, I hereby announce my personal donation of ₦250,000 to support Tomi Akporoghene Wojuola, a man who suffered humiliation and trauma simply because he chose compassion over indifference. I will obtain his details through Bright Edafe, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Delta State Command, whose professionalism in public communication deserves acknowledgement.
I also call on Christian leaders, good-spirited Nigerians, and even our Muslim brothers and sisters to support this man. Kindness is a universal virtue. Today it is Wojuola. Tomorrow, it could be anyone who dares to help another human being.
Our Lord, Jesus Christ, was crucified because He confronted injustice, hypocrisy, and cruelty with love and truth. If you claim His name but refuse to stand with those who suffer for living out His teachings, then you must ask yourself whose gospel you genuinely believe.
Christians must not be punished for being the salt of the earth and the light of the world. And when they are targeted, the Church must rise and not hide.
Anything less is a betrayal of Jesus Christ Himself.
● Frank Tietie, is a lawyer and Executive Director of Citizens Advocacy for Social & Economic Rights (CASER), Abuja.
NB: See Reference Link to Wujuola’s Story
https://saharareporters.com/2026/01/03/nigerian-police-remove-delta-dpo-udoh-over-corrupt-practices-refund-money-good-samaritan
