Osinbajo Urges Clerics to Pay ‘’Pentecost Tax’’

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has urged preachers to pay Pentecost tax. He made this statement last Friday during the public presentation of a biography on Pastor W.F Kumuyi titled “Kumuyi, Defender of the Faith” in Lagos.

Pastor Kumuyi is the General Superintendent of Deeper Christian Life Ministry. According to Osinbajo, the society ought to get three forms of taxes from successful people.

The first form of tax he said are the income taxes (which is the personal income tax) and corporation tax for company owners. The second form of tax is a social tax or philanthropy. This form of tax is the duty of the wealthy to give back to society.

He added that the third tax is a civic tax which is the duty of the successful to write their stories and share the histories of the phenomena they have become. However, he noted that “but for the successful preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ, there is the fourth tax, this is the Pentecost Tax,”

In addition, Osinbajo asked clerics to talk about their missionary journeys, signs and wonders, miracles, persecutions, and deprivations.

Reactions

Olarenwaju Agoro said, ‘’Pentecost tax is not financial as he explained. It is in form of telling the people your experiences, challenges, and successes recorded in the course of the gospel.’’

Makike Offor posted, ‘’Osinbajo said persons who succeed in their endeavors owe society three forms of taxes. The first is income taxes (personal income tax), and corporation tax for company owners. The question is, what of those who did not succeed? Won’t the government ask them to pay taxes? How will they differentiate those who succeed in their endeavors from those who didn’t succeed?’’

Kenneth Okoh commented, ‘’Where did he coin it from? Even if there is a disconnect between the term ‘’Pentecost tax’’ and the assumed meaning ascribed to it by the public, as a professor he should know better. 

"The word ‘’tax’’ has no two meaning. If the substance of his submission is to advice pastors to share their experiences and challenges with the members of their churches, he could have used another term instead of ‘’Pentecost tax.’’ Pentecost tax should not be the appropriate caption. He should know better. Those who transmit knowledge equally have the capacity to transmit errors.’’