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| Pastor Frankline Ndifor, "Prophet and faith-healer" |
Sad news from Cameroon that another victim of religion has died of Covid-19. Pastor Frankline Ndifor, a candidate in Cameroon's last presidential election, head of the Kingship International Ministries Church and popular purveyor of magic faith 'healing', died at his home in Douala a week after contracting the Covid-19 virus, probably when laying his magic hands on another victim.
According to this report in Voice of America, by Moki Edwin Kindzeka, his death has provoked panic in his congregation, many of whom had fallen for his bogus claims and regarded him as a prophet.
A medical team led by Doctor Gaelle Nnanga, had arrived at his home having been asked to attend by member of Ndifor's church, but he died some ten minutes after they treated him for severe breathing difficulties. As news of his death spread, many of his supporters gathered outside his house, praying that he would be resurrected. Police had to use force to break up the crowd and gain access to the house to allow Cameroon's COVID-19 response team to remove the body.
The regional governor had ordered police in when the medical team had been chased away by Ndifor's supporters to prevent them burying him, claiming he could not be dead but had merely gone on a 'spiritual journey' and would be returning.
Medical authorities are now appealing for those on whom Pastor Ndifor laid his hands, to come forward to be tested. As one of his followers, Rigobert Che, said:
This is a pastor that has been laying hands [on the sick] and claiming that he cures COVID-19. If you, the person that claims that you are curing COVID-19, you are dead, what about the fellow people that were affected by the COVID-19? Now that he is dead, I do not know how the people that he was laying hands on will be healed.
All these unfortunate people are of course victims of two viruses working in close alliance - religion and Covid-19. It seems Ndifor had come to believe in his own magical curative powers and his credulous followers had believed him, so making themselves vulnerable to infection by the Covid-19 that Ndifor might well have contracted when a victim came to him to be 'cured'. Just as we see in Christian, Jewish and Muslim fundamentalists, religion encourages gullible people to gather together, and ignore social distancing measures, believing themselves to be protected by magic, so making themselves more likely to be infected.
As a result, the people of Douala, Cameroon, have lost a benefactor. One of Pastor Ndifor's last public acts was to distribute buckets and soap to the poor of his home town and to hand out face masks.
As I have said before, these unfortunate people and their families are victims of religion, no less so than they are victims of a pandemic virus. Tweet
"Each person's death diminishes me, For I am involved in mankind. Therefore, send not to know For whom the bell tolls, It tolls for thee. - John Donne"
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