Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows

Reuben Turbi Luka

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

Research Article |

| Peer-Reviewed

Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows

Reuben Turbi Luka^*

Published in Social Sciences (Volume 14, Issue 4)

Received: 30 June 2025 Accepted: 16 July 2025 Published: 31 July 2025

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Abstract

True prophecy is validated by the fulfillment of a prophet’s declarations, either in his lifetime or in the aftermath of his death. (Mal 2:7; 2 Pet 1:20). In the context of this study, the prophet, Paul Gunen Gindiri, being reviewed, has gone to be with his Creator. This article, therefore, explores the role of Paul Gunen Gindiri, an obscure prophet whose humming thundering voice foretold the de-secularization of Nigeria to promote the Islamization of the country, and Nigeria’s registration in the OIC. Born into a middle-class Pyem royal family, in Pumbush in Pyem Chiefdom, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, Paul’s royal blood and upbringing alongside other experiences of life, not only facilitated his conversion to Christianity but also motivated his passion and perception of life in its entirety. Against this backdrop, he ventured into many things with a view to succeeding far above his contemporaries. His struggle to become a successful business tycoon ultimately led to an encounter with the world out there, the encounter that helped him to experience the other side of life outside his royal domain. Thus, the quest to succeed became the crucible he encountered Christ and his Gospel, and he was determined to convey this message to all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Interestingly, little did he know that his voice was going to replicate the voices of the prophets of old. This study argues that, though never recognized as a prophet in his lifetime, Paul’s predictions are vividly and synonymously crystallized in the brutal pogrom of Christians and the taking over of their ancestral lands. The paper beams a searchlight on the Nigerian socioreligious and socio-political terrains. It demonstrates that the horrible realities are hitting us in the face because the church has failed to heed Paul’s prophetic voice. To establish the ground for this assertion, the study employs a historical methodology to investigate Paul's predictions against the backdrop of Old Testament prophecies, and concludes that the current situation is galvanised by the church’s failure to live out the warnings of an obscure prophet in the shadows.

Published in	Social Sciences (Volume 14, Issue 4)
DOI	10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22
Page(s)	409-417
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Prophet, Nigeria, Islamization, Politics, Church, Declaration, Fulfilment

1. Introduction

Biblical prophecy never had its origin in the will of man; rather, men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit to be Yahweh’s mouthpiece (1 Peter 1: 21, NIV). Malachi sheds light, “…the lips of a priest ought to preserve knowledge, and from his mouth men should seek instruction-because he is the messenger of the LORD Almighty,” (Mal 2: 7, NIV). Prophetic knowledge forewarns and foretells the precarious recipe of peril as a consequence of human aberration. Conduits that conveyed such messages were not necessarily placed high in the echelon of society but humble and faithful vessels available for God’s use. Thus, like most prophets in the Old Testament, Paul Gindiri, though a successful business tycoon, was not sophisticated in the sense of attaining any professional degrees through sitting in the four walls of an academic classroom. Like the unlettered Prophet Amos, the shepherd of Tekoa, warned his nation against excessive accumulation of wealth by the bourgeois, advocating for justice to flow “like a river” (Amos 5: 24), Paul forewarned the Nigerian church. However, like Prophet Isaiah’s “Go and tell this people: ‘be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving; make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes,” (Isa 6: 9-10, NIV), the church in Nigeria became callous and nonchalant and failed to heed the voice of Paul who was held to be a rabble rouser. Yet, he was so vociferous in his warnings against the evil of society. Thus, hated but not halted from voicing out what he believed was God’s voice to Nigerians. Against this background, the study employs a historical methodology to demonstrate how the predictions of Paul have been fulfilled with the spate of killings, and the taking over of autochthonous nationalities’ ancestral lands. David Haji Kajom

[1]

notes that historical methodology is “Based on oral evidence to obtain a better understanding of the present, through the evaluation of the past, and an intelligent prediction of the future…it…refreshes…unfolds what is not known.”

This definition provides a springboard to investigate the predictions of Paul Gindiri on the de-secularization of Nigeria to promote the Islamization of the country, and Nigeria’s registration in the OIC. The chapter points out that, though never recognized as a prophet in his lifetime, his predictions are vividly and synonymously crystallized in the brutal pogrom of Christians in Nigeria.

2. Paul Gindiri: Ancestral Pedigree, Career Training and Conversion

No one conversant with a hospital scene would miss the recurrent spasm of expectant mothers’ birth pangs. For Paul Gindiri, the labour room of Magajiya Naru, his mother, was a section in the African thatched roof mud hut that houses the family in Pumbush in Pyem Chiefdom, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State. Davidson Musa Lar

[2]

gave March 10th 1935, as Paul’s birth day. Though Gunen Saidu Sedet-his father was a member of the Pyem royal family, Paul was never confined to a royal lifestyle of the type that restrained. This made his contact possible with the Sudan United Missionaries (SUM) from whom he heard the gospel preached and got converted. Before now, Gyang Luke Dung

[3]

recounts his pre-conversion experience to include being, “Able to see some human-like spirit figures coming from the stream not too far from his house.” Dung

[3]

paints a picture of Paul’s alien spirit figures as “…dwarf-like, short, stout, with protruding canine teeth, had tails at the lower end of their backs…. they came in groups of either four, seven, ten or twelve.”

Such an experience facilitated his conversion to Christ, which brought an end, the strange experience. Thus, shortly in 1944, he got enrolled on the SUM Junior Primary School. Both his conversion to Christianity and enrolment into primary school became the crucibles for persecution as his father saw that to be an abdication of primary responsibility on the part of one who should hustle to fend for the family (Dung

[3]

Hence, his plan to further was not to be as Gunen, his father declined to pay the fee required for the next level. In consequence, Paul was provoked and saw no reason to continue a sedentary subsistence farming life. Against his father’s will, he left home and got employed as a labourer at Ungwan Mission; the present sites of the Gindiri Boys Secondary School and the Girls’ High School (Lar

[2]

). This vocation fanned to flames his obsession for independence, which in turn developed an insatiable quest to be self-employed, which he believed would lead to a good life. This fantasy led ultimately to a search for meaning in life, which he found when destiny brought him in contact with a kind Yoruba man who introduced him to Tumbiri, a Birom elder statesman and head driver to James Shina. At first, Paul was employed by Shina as a motor-mate at Dorowa Babuje in Ropp District of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, from where he secured appointment as a driving and mechanical apprentice with ATMN, Bukuru.

With his driving/mechanical certificate backed by the driving licence, Paul adopts the proverbial, the sky is your limit, and soared high to a degree above his contemporaries in Gindiri.

3. Prophet and Prophetism: The Context of the Ancient Near East

This section argues that prophetism, a concept that finds expression in religious parlance, means one who speaks for Yahweh as his mouthpiece. Gerda de Villiers notes

[4]

, “a prophet is someone who acts as a ‘mouthpiece’ of a god;’ a prophet is a human medium who is capable of receiving and transmitting a message from a deity,” (Villiers

[4]

). Niels Kastfelt

[5]

gives a different nuance to the word. For him, a prophet is a, “Charismatic man who better than others perceives the problems of his society…. preaches a specific course of action…intuitively or by revelation….”

Given that a prophet is the stand-in for God, Villiers

[4]

notes, “All prophecy has bearing on particular socio-historical circumstances.” Emmanuel Itapson and George E. Janvier

[5]

state, “The message of the prophets was lived out during the constant rebellions of the Northern and Southern Kingdoms of Israel and Judah.”

Against this background, prophecies in the Ancient Near East were occasioned by the aberration that calls attention to divine intervention. Examples include, Nathan who rebuked King David for his act of infidelity with Beersheba the wife of Uriah (2 Sam 12: 1-13), Amos addresses the socio-economic injustice and immorality of the upper-class of his day, Hosea’s voice raved against Israel’s religious leaders’ rebellion and unfaithfulness to Yahweh (4: 1-10). Emmanuel and Janvier

[5]

painted the scenario during Amos’ time, thus,

An upper class made up of the supper-rich emerged. They built the most elegant of homes and filled them with the most expensive furnishings (Amos 4: 1-3; 3: 15; 5: 15). Unfortunately, economic boom for the rich meant economic doom for the poor of the land. In the quest for more wealth, the poor were targeted for economic and legal exploitation. As the rich got richer the poor got poorer. The courts were so corrupt that the poor could not find redress in them and often ended up as slaves of the rich (2: 6; 8: 6).

While Amos lived in one of the most turbulent times, Jeremiah’s era seems more pathetic with hapless victims resulting from relegation and oppression. Itapson and Janvier

[5]

aptly quips, “A long succession of corrupt, idolatrous, and politically minded religious leaders had taken the people, spiritually, past the point of no return.”

In the face of a moral downturn, perpetrators of evil often become hardened and unyielding to Yahweh’s warnings. In consequence, Yahweh’s messengers often become prey in the hands of their detractors. Micaiah (1 Kings 22), and John the Baptist (Mark 6: 16-28) are biblical cases in point; in Nigeria, it is Paul.

4. Paul: One Like the Prophets of Ancient Near East - An Obscure Prophet Called and Commissioned

The best place to situate Paul’s prophetic voice in Nigeria’s socio-religious, socio-political, and socio-economic setting resonates with Jesus’ “Only in his home town and in his own house is a prophet without honour,” (Matt 13: 57, NIV). Thus, even though a man of affluence, when he began denouncing the ills of Nigeria elites, Paul like the prophets of old came face to face with serious opposition from the powers that be. However, like Jesus’ authority that somewhat barricaded him against the onslaught of the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders (Mark 11: 27-33), so, Paul built business edifices that in part earned him good fortunes, which in turn built a hedge around him. While in Jos, he secured employment with a private company that saw him travelling to many cities across Nigeria. Lar

[2]

asserts, “The young man was very lucky because he got jobs wherever he went, but he never kept any sort of employment for long.”

Crisscrossing the shores of Nigeria, Paul frequented Maiduguri which later became his domicile. Thus, revolutionized his worldview as he got mixed up with Muslims. Dung

[3]

notes, “From then on, Paul Gindiri’s moral degeneration took a…plunge, as he started to drink heavily, to smoke and to engage in immorality.”

Farther away from God but closer to Satan, Paul also resorted to charms and mysticism. When he Perceived himself as one fortified and impregnable, he could not only drink liquid liquor, but would as well crush the liquor bottles with his teeth, and swallow it-an act reminiscent of overt diabolism. Thus, he plunged deep into the spiritual darkness of the proportion no man of his age and time ever endeavoured.

Paul’s quest to satiate his appetite knew no bound as red district passion tops other uncontrolled indulgences. Jesus’ words, “...all who draw the sword will die by the sword,” (Matt 26: 52, NIV) finds expression in Paul’s predilection especially for women and sex. Invariably, that brought him to a breakeven and turning point. Hence, the sword metaphor replicates Paul’s turning point when out of uncontrolled anger in 1962 in Minna, the Niger State Capital, he almost killed an opponent in a fight for a prostitute. Dung

[3]

cites incisively, “Holding a bottle of Guinness in his hand, he aimed at the man’s forehead and gave him such a blow that the bottle smashed on it. The man instantly fell unconscious as blood gushed out uncontrollably from his forehead.”

This encounter that saw him in police custody, revolutionized him, and by divine intervention, died by the metaphoric sword of his obsession and brought abruptly to an end, all the worldly passion that hitherto entangled him. Satan’s champion must be crushed to become Yahweh’s instrument. Thus, in a certain night after his release from police detention, Dung

[3]

succinctly reports,

That same night, as soon as he closed his eyes to sleep, a man appeared to him in a radiating bright light. The man woke him up and said to him, ‘listen, I am Jesus, I had earlier appeared to you and called you to become mine. Now I am appearing to you for the second time. I was the one who restored the man you hit unconscious back to life to give a chance to repent. From today onward, you should never again drink alcoholic beverages. All the sins you have been committing must stop forthwith. Failure to repent will attract my appearance for a third time in which I will take your life and cast you into hell fire.

From that day on in 1962, Paul resolved to die to himself in order to serve the living God who appeared to him in the dream. Graciously, God availed him the opportunity through Lami, his wife, who invited him to church on a Sunday after returning from the Minna trip. On this fateful Sunday, Rev. Kure Nitte, the minister in charge at ECWA Bishara No. 1 Adebayo Street Jos, was led to preached on what Paul held to be an expose from one of his companions on the trip to Minna to Lami who in turn divulged it to the minister. But when, the following Sunday, a totally strange minister rehearsed similar words Kure had used the previous Sunday, Paul came to the end of himself and got convinced that it was the voice of God and not that of a man. Thus, surrendered his life to Christ (Lar

[2]

Paul’s conversion came simultaneously with his commission. Thus, four days after conversion, God appeared to him with clear instruction on the nature of the feat he was to undertake. Lar

[2]

elaborates,

…my preaching was to be against sin in the whole of Nigeria; against false pastors and churches; against complacent, gullible and docile Christian leaders in position of authority; against ungodly politicians and corrupt leaders in the nation; against all forms of subtle manipulations to Islamize the nation and against all forms of Islamic violent jihad against the church and Christians in Northern Nigeria.

Obviously, Yahweh called and commissioned Paul as a Prophet. He is Yahweh’s voice to the nation to speak against the established structures in the social niche.

5. Paul the Obscure Prophet: Hidden Vault Rip upon - Prophetic Declarations, and Fulfilments

This section explores the predictions of Paul who vehemently spoke against the religious, political and economic structures of Nigeria and foretold the de-secularization of Nigeria to establish an Islamic Ummah. First, I defined and briefly examined the role of an evangelist. Second, I consider the role of a prophet. This approach provides a framework to validate the assertion of the study that Paul was an obscure prophet who in his lifetime was never believed to be.

John Calvin

[6]

sees the role of an apostle and that of an evangelist mutually inclusive. For him, “Such were needed to bring back the church from the revolt of Antichrist.” K. Thacker and T. D. Gener

[7]

underscore the function of an evangelist. S/he is to, “Bring, proclaim or share the good news or gospel.”

A. Lamorte and G. F. Hawthorne

[8]

gave helpful insight on the etymology of the word prophet. They posit that prophet is derived from, “The Greek prophètèѕ, from ‘pro’ (‘before’ or ‘for’) and phèmi (‘to speak’). The prophet is thus the one who speaks before in the sense of proclamation, or the one who speaks for, i.e., in the name of (God).”

These two roles overlap-explicated by the mutually inclusive term, ‘proclaim;’ meaning both an evangelist and a prophet are commissioned agents to proclaim the counsel of God.

This insight lays the framework for an examination of Paul’s prophesies and their fulfilments in Jos not in Gindiri his place of nativity as his thundering voice was first heard while on top of the rock of Kantoma Market in Jos metropolis. He explains why,

God opened my eyes to understand that Jos is a time-bomb waiting to explode someday in the future. God started educating me about how far the Hausa/Fulani had hoodwinked, demeaned and humiliated the people of Jos for far too long. God told me to alert the Jos natives and the Church in Plateau of the danger confronting the Church in the years ahead, on what will happen when I am long dead and gone (Lar

[2]

The background for Paul’s choice of the rock-top at the Kantoma Market in the city of Jos for the take-off of his ministry is critical. The rock top of Kantoma Market provided a panoramic view of the bustling busy commercial life of the city centre in Jos metropolis. It was such a convenient stage for the Canadian Sudan Interior Missionary (SIM): Dr. Andrew Stirrett to stand on and announce the good news about Jesus Christ. By the time of Paul’s conversion and start of ministry in 1962, the vicinity of the Kantoma Market rock was in addition to the market, surrounded mostly by Hausa/Fulani settlers. This rock-top had a horizon that echoed a person’s voice for all passers-by and residents to hear. This explains why Dr. Stirret took advantage of the strategic rock top to bring forth the counsel of Yahweh to the people of Jos. Before his demise on July 8th, 1948, Lar

[2]

maintains that Dr. Stirrett once prayed, “O Lord! O Lord, raise a man out of Jos. Dear Lord, raise a man from Jos to preach the true gospel that brings salvation to Muslims in Jos and the whole Northern part of this country. Lord, make such a man a colossus that would shake Northern Nigeria for you.”

This prayer became the lasting monument upon which Paul’s prophetic ministry stood tall. Lar

[2]

reports,

Just before Dr. Stirrett’s demise, he gave Mama Milkatu, his maid for many years a box full of books, gospel tracks, pictures, a small horn speaker and amplifier as well as thirty pounds in cash to be kept for the man that would come after him. When Paul Gindiri started preaching on the Kantoma rock and the gospel centre, Mama Milkatu sensed in her spirit that the newly converted Paul Gindiri was the man Dr. Stirrett prophesied about. She dutifully handed over the box and earthly remains of Dr. Stirrett to Paul.

Dung

[3]

sees an obvious fulfilment of Dr. Stirrett’s prophecy about his successor in Paul’s ministry. He notes aptly, “With Dr. Stirrett gone from the streets of Jos, Evangelist Paul Gindiri kept the torch burning.”

Paul’s personal encounter with the Muslims and Islamic denigration of non-Muslims gave impetus to his astronomic rise as a prophet to denounce the hitherto Islamic structures and treatment of the non-Hausa/Fulani, non-Muslim groups in Northern Nigeria. Fundamentally, the 1804-1808 Uthman Dan Fodio campaigns-grand plan to eradicate non-Muslim, and non-Islamic faiths in favour of the Fulani oligarchy was the passion of Paul. Cardinal to this was the colonial masters’ denominator of divide used to create four regions for the country with the North having two: far North and the Middle Belt in the one Northern Nigeria. The far north dominated by the Hausa/Fulani that has Islam as a belief system was favoured more than other zones, especially, the Middle Belt densely populated by the autochthonous Christian and non-Christian faithful.

In consequence, when the colonial masters handed over power at independence in 1960, the Hausa/Fulani already had a sophisticated plan under Sir Ahmadu Bello the Sardauna Sokoto to take over Nigeria. Hence, they revisited Dan Fodio’s jihadist blueprint and instituted economic, and political structures that marginalized and reduced the non-Hausa/Fulani, non-Muslims to faceless minor status and Plateau State and its citizens were the main targets. During this time, the government of Northern Region enacted pro-Islamic laws in its constitution, and worked assiduously toward promoting and propagating Islam (Dung

[3]

). The Hausa/Fulani orchestrated scheme resulted in the “loss of lives and limbs by innocent Christian soldiers of Middle Belt and Southern extraction during Nigeria’s military coup d’état and counter-coups of the 1960s to mid-1970s as well as the Nigerian civil war of July 2, 1967-January 15, 1970.” After the war, “from the period of General Yakubu Gowon Muslims moved to lobby for contracts, and key positions in order to empower themselves politically and economically (Dung

[3]

).” Armed with Political and economic powers, the Northern Mafia sponsored Northern Muslims to migrate to other parts of Nigeria. This was the flashpoint of Paul’s prophetic declaration as he warned Christians to desist from the pilgrim mentality to engage their society and he criticized the government for being pro-Islamic. Bluntly, he maintained that “the civil war was only a reaction to the policies of deliberate Islamization, long harboured and meticulously executed by Muslims in the north (Dung

[3]

).” He also “lashed out at Muslims in government for falsifying the 1963 census figures in order to give the impression of Muslims numerical predominance over Christians in Nigeria (Dung

[3]

).”

Against this background, when the Hausa/Fulani began to assert and exert philosophies of domination and oppressions on the owners of the settlements they occupied, making unfounded claims of ownership of their hosts’ ancestral lands, the host communities realizing that the centre could no longer hold called for able defenders to speak for them. Essentially, the battle was fought on two fronts. (1) The emancipatory voices of Community Development Associations’ leaders raved against the ills perpetrated against their people, (2). God raised polemicists to debunk the Hausa/Fulani aspersions against the autochthonous nationalities in writing.

The situation was made dicier with the coming of military rule-particularly General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s regime in which the cleavage widened. First, when Nigeria was invited to send representatives to the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) scheduled for January 6th 10th, 1986, in Fez Morocco, the invitation was only for observer status, but Babangida sent five Nigerian delegations along with a membership registration form which was automatically approved as the normal one-year probation period was waived by the organization. (Dung

[3]

). Second, the 1989 Abuja Islamic Declaration with its fifteen-point agenda that seeks to de-secularize Nigeria in favour of an Islamic caliphate was an offshoot of the conference in Morocco. Of the fifteen objectives, Lucky Dung Pam

[9]

points fourteen and fifteen are most telling:

(14) To eradicate, in all its forms and ramifications all non-Muslim religions in member nations (such religions shall include Christianity, Ahmadiyya and other tribal modes of worship unacceptable to Muslims), (15) To ensure the decoration of Nigeria (24th African and 46th World member of the OIC) a Federal Sultanate at a convenient date and time from 28th March 1990, with the Sultan of Sokoto enthroned as the Sultan Supreme sovereign Nigeria.

Emenike Nwafor

[10]

had noted that one of the online sources also reads, “To ensure the appointment of only Muslims into strategic national and international posts of member nations.”

To bolster and climax the religious bigotry shrouded in the conference of the Islam in Africa Organization, Davidson Musa Lar, and Gyang D. Pam

[11]

declared that “General Babangida donated $21 Billion Dollars Islamic Development Fund (IDF) from the Federal Government treasury.” When Nigeria finally secured registration with OIC, the Gospel team under Paul “used every means possible to canvas for the reversal of this action. Lar and Pam

[11]

further paints, “In their frenzy, the team organized a crusade in Dodan Barrack, Lagos and publicly preached against the OIC saga.”

The outcome of this conference took a momentary centre stage in the history of Nigeria in the lopsided appointments of all the service chiefs of Fulani Muslims extraction. Obviously, there is a clear systematic move to eradicate Christianity in Nigeria. This explains why in the recent past, tens of thousands of Churches have been burnt, many communities in Southern Kaduna, Benue, Taraba, Adamawa, Southern Borno, Yobe, Katsina, Zamfara, Plateau etc. have been wiped out and such desecrated communities have been resettled by Fulani herdsmen. In some cases, the communities have been renamed by the conquering forces. A case in point is Laduga, a mixed settlement in Zangon Kataf Local Government of Southern Kaduna State is excised and moved to Kachia Local Government, fortified and made strictly a Fulani Muslims settlement. Other examples are some displaced Christian communities on the Jos Plateau. Viz, Gashis, Kassa, Hai-Pan etc. Furthermore, the North and Middle Belt for example, are engulfed with persistent terrorists’ attacks and kidnappings by Boko Haram, thereby leading to insecurity, violence and anxiety among indigenous Christian communities. Today, Christians in Chibok and Dapchi can no longer live in their fatherlands. And exactly five years now, Leah Sharibu is still in the custody of Boko Haram.

Given this scenario, this study argues that to comprehend the context that gave rise to Paul’s prophetic declarations, it is expedient to investigate the social, religious, political and economic larger systemic structure he existed. Thus, shortly after his conversion in 1962, Paul became an itinerant evangelist crisscrossing Jos metropolis in a linear circuit that began from Layin Zana and terminated at Gangare and vice versa. This evangelistic bout that brought many Muslims in the city of Jos to faith in Christ was so offensive that many Muslims coveted an opportunity if within their power to crush him, and persecution against him became synonymous with freedom. Galvanized by the surpassing knowledge of Christ and his desire to make him known, Paul would not in his effort to disseminate that knowledge allow himself to be distracted by the mundane he believed is not worth compared to the crown that awaits him. When it became obvious to the Muslims on the Plateau that Paul was no match for them, they created networks outside Plateau State and began to invite Islamic scholars outside Jos to engage him in apologetics they had always lost.

Are all these efforts simply an attempt to defend Islam? Far from that, to the Hausa/Fulani community on the Plateau, there is an underground theory aimed to give them an equal share of the State’s cake. Hence, they must at all cost have a Hausa/Fulani Emir in Jos to control the seat of power. This dream became full blown with their blatant request to have a Hausa/Fulani installed as Emir. Realizing the ominous peril of this request, the indigenous peoples of Plateau reacted sharply and called on the resident commissioner to turn the provoking request down. Mr. A. T. Weatherhead

[12]

; the colonial resident commissioner of Plateau Province therefore, issued a circular to that effect. This circular Ref. No: 408/139-February 1957. 1

[5]

reads in part,

With regards to your request that I should reject the demand for Hausa Chief, I attach for your information, a copy of my letter to the president of N. P. C (Northern Peoples’ Congress Party) on this subject. I do not think that any useful purpose would be found by establishing chiefs for Hausa, Yorubas and Ibos. It would merely accentuate tribalism in Jos Native Town. There are already in the Town Council, a Wakilin Ibo, a Wakilin Yoruba and a Wakilin Hausa, who are supposed to fulfil the functions of community leaders.

Earlier, Paul informed us that God opened his eyes to see the time bomb on the Plateau. On that premise, Lar

[2]

approves, “Having come to this revelation, the emancipation and liberation of the Church and the Plateau man became one of the goals of evangelist Paul Gindirir.”

Paul then became the battle axe. He recruited missionaries with whom he traverses the nooks and crannies of Nigeria declaring the counsel of God. His first prophetic declaration was a call for the Afizere, Anaguta and Berom people to join forces against their Hausa/Fulani detractors. If they fail, Paul decreed,

If the Afizeres, Anagutas and Beroms refuse to unite and come together as one people under God; if they do not stop selling their ancestral farmlands to Hausa/Fulani, we shall all wake up one day in Jos and witness a situation where the ‘tenant’ would seek to kill the ‘landlord’ in order to take away the house. I fear that. I hope I would not be alive to witness this. I hope to be home (heaven) then.’ But I prophesy it would certainly happen if they do not heed what I am saying to them (Lar

[2]

To validate Paul’s credential as a prophet from God, Lar

[2]

alludes to the first ever major Jos 2001 crisis as the fulfilment of Paul’s prophecy. He attests, “This prophecy came to pass in 2001, some five years after Paul Gindiri had died. In 2001, Jos erupted into violence never before seen.”

Jos’ situation is similar to most Ancient Near Eastern contexts where the people were judged for refusing to heed to God’s voice through his prophets. For this reason, the judgement of God befalls Jos for not taking the voice of God seriously. The link between Paul’s prediction and fulfilment denote that he saw ahead what was to take place in the future.

Like Jesus wept over Jerusalem, so, time and again, Paul warned and wept over the midst that had clouded his peoples’ sense of reasoning. Lar

[2]

pertinently observed.

Paul did all he could to warn the native of as well the Church to see the diabolical and Satanic assault that the malevolent Lucifer was planning for Jos. He tried to educate people to pray and return to godliness and desist from witchcraft, alcoholism, promiscuity, lethargy, docility and other sinful lifestyles. He warned that if God’s people continue to ignore Him, a fury ‘from the North shall arise against Plateau State.

Itapson and Janvier

[5]

are right to state, “The call of God is not without its difficulties. In 1:17, God told Jeremiah, ‘Do not be afraid of them.’” Like Jeremiah, Paul knew the pay cheque for his calling was not the dividends of human applause, but rejection from those who should stand along. Thus, the ardent critics of Paul were pastors who manned the Pulpits. They predicated their assertions that Paul was too harsh in his approach to issues he deemed to be contradictions. On his part, Paul was vehement. For instance, Reverend B. B. Bishi accosted Paul saying, “You and your group are trouble- makers. You have deviated from preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and all you do is to go around abusing Pastors and Christian leaders as well as antagonizing the Muslims…!” (Lar & Pam

[11]

Yahweh will have to prove one of the two parties: Bishi or Paul right or wrong. Thus, in response, Paul declared, “You call the Gospel Teams troublemakers? You say we are antagonizing the Muslims? Well, let me prophesy to you that you shall be killed by Muslims in this Church and it shall not be because the Gospel Teams antagonized the Muslims. It would be because you lacked understanding....” (Lar & Pam

[11]

Like Yahweh judged Miriam for criticizing Moses (Num 12: 1-10), so he judged Bishi for speaking against his servant. Lar and Pam

[11]

, cited that Paul walked away from the scene and a short time later, “Rev. Bishi was murdered in his Church by Muslim youths in 1987 during the Zangon-Kataf ethno-religious crisis that spread to Kaduna…”

In another episode during an Easter rally in terminus in 1990, Paul decried,

Someday in Jos, while I am gone home (heaven), you (the) pastors who are criticizing me for telling you the truth would see your church members, buildings, friends and relatives killed like simple goats or sheep on the streets of Jos. Someday, in the future, there would be places in Jos you cannot even dare to go to or build Churches! There would be places you cannot build houses. You are calling me a troublemaker because I am trying to make you see that our collective complacency is going to cost us so much? I am innocent of the blood of everyone who has ever heard me because I have fulfilled the job of a watchman…. (Lar

[2]

Before the 1990 Easter rally prophecy, the 1989 one was more elaborate. Paul thundered,

You said I am trouble-maker? You said that I am looking for trouble and inciting Muslim fundamentalists against Christianity? Let me ask you, who incited the killings of Christians in Zaria, Zangon-Kataf and Kafanchan? Who incited Maitatsine in Kano and Maiduguri? Who incited Kalakato in Yola? Was it me? Let me give you this prophecy, in precisely twelve years from now, they would attack and kill you and your children in Jos, and Plateau State. You would run away from your homes while your lands and inheritances would be plundered and taken by the uncircumcised. Church buildings, your houses and businesses would be destroyed by strangers. Mothers and daughters would be raped, pregnant women would have their bellies ripped open and their unborn babies dash to the wall or rocks. Old men and women would be killed and burnt to ashes…. Pray against the dark days that would come upon you from the North. Pray against the marauding army that would come from outside Nigeria, and with the connivance of your leaders, they shall put you to death. Pray against the calamity that would be visited upon the State for many years without end. If you do not pray and repent, you would see what God has said coming to pass (Lar

[2]

Sadly enough, a walk across the breadth, width and length of Jos metropolis vouchsafes the veracity of this declaration. As it is today, no Churches or Christian houses can be found at Ungwan Rogo, Gangare, Dilimi, Yan Shanu, Kwararafa, etc. In fact, the cradle of Paul’s evangelistic preaching houses no Christian building these days. And this situation finds resonances in some mega cities in Nigeria.

These facts on ground attests that Paul was someone never believed to be a prophet but whose prophecies have proved he was. One of his criticisms of the indolence of Christians in Nigeria occurred when in 1989 a Christian youth was waylaid and mercilessly killed by Muslims on his way home from the Gospel centre in Ahmadu Bello way, Jos. When information got to the Christian youths, they mobilized and headed for Paul’s residence to seek permission for reprisal. Against their aspiration, Paul laments,

I have been urging Christians to wake up. We must put an end to political differences and denominationalism. Go and tell your parents to pray hard for Jos, because we would someday bear the consequences of what we have done for ourselves, and for the sin that rules the land. I see the destruction that is coming against us in this city. This incident that brought you all here is just child’s play. Go home and pray for Jos and Plateau State (Lar

[2]

As the song goes, ‘prayer is the key,’ so, Paul believed fervent prayer could avert the threat of annihilation coming to Christians on the Plateau and Nigeria at large. Unabatedly for weeks, months and years, he quakes fervently for Jos and Nigeria.

The crescendo of Paul’s prophetic unction was in 1986 when the New Life for All “planned a convention for three states in Nigeria-Kano, Kaduna and Plateau at the Polo Field in Jos from 28th-30th March, 1986 (Lar

[2]

).”

Sadly, some Muslim clerics on the Plateau who feared the possible loss of followers to Christianity used the commissioner of police; Alhaji Buba Fika from Fika Local Government Area of Yobe State to thwart the outreach. Consequently, truckloads of Christians from Kano, Kaduna and those from local government areas of Plateau State were denied access to the field. Hearing this, Paul made every attempt possible to secure approval from both the governor and police commissioner to no avail. Like the apostles resolved, “We must obey God rather than men,” (Acts 5: 29 b, ESV); Paul resolved to obey God, not men and headed to Polo Field on his Range Rover Vehicle, like Prophet Jeremiah, on arrival, he began to lament over the situation. Lar

[2]

cites,

I have never thought in my lifetime, we would be beaten and fired with tear-gas in Jos. Oh, Jesus, where are you? Why have you forsaken us? Let the commissioner of police hear this since he has brought his men against Jesus and the church on the Plateau: ‘As long as Jesus lives, I cursed his village of Fika. He and his descendants would never know peace in Fika. A marauding mob from the North who are of the same faith as him would someday lay siege over Fika town and the region where he comes from. They shall kill, plunder, bomb and maim his people because he dared Jesus. Unless I am not a prophet it shall come to pass.

Hearing the curse Paul hurled on the Commissioner of Police, his people and town, a very senior Christian chief superintendent of police got provoked, rushed to where Paul was, removed his Pistol, points it on his forehead, and yields, “Get out of this field or I would kill you like a Dog (Lar

[2]

).” On his part, Paul retorted prophetically,

You are a Christian and you threatened to kill me with a gun because I defend the gospel? I pity you. Initially, I did not want to leave this place until the Governor comes here, but since it is you, my fellow Christian brother, that was sent to kick me out of the Polo Field, I shall go. But let it be known that you will die within a week, except I am not a servant of God. And you shall die by a gun…. (Lar

[2]

The acid test of true prophecy lies on its fulfilment. Thus, both Alhaji Fika and the Christian chief superintendent of police ripped the fruit of their hate for Yahweh. Accordingly, while Fika town of Fika Local Government Area of Yobe State became a flashpoint for Boko Haram attacks and massacre, the Christian Chief superintendent of police lost his life through gun shot in a quarrel with his colleagues at the gate of his house (Lar

[2]

Another prophecy that demonstrates and validates the crowning testimony that established Paul as a prophet came on Easter Sunday, April 6th; a week after the two previous prophecies. The Government of Plateau State had enacted a decree prohibiting open air preaching in the State, and Paul found this repugnant. Berating government disdain for the gospel, he rants,

The Government of Plateau State enacted Edict No. 4 of 1986 to stop the preaching of the gospel. No one is saying anything. Not even the state Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). Some of you pastors have been criticizing me that I am not a true man of God because I refused to obey the government. Last week, they bathed us with teargas and broke our heads and limbs while some of you laughed and jeered at us. I therefore decree and declare to you all, that there shall be no rain in Plateau State this year. That would be God’s punishment on the State for condoning this evil. Until I speak otherwise, there shall be no rains (Lar

[2]

Amazingly, the Plateau was plagued with drought, and rain would fall only at the words of Yahweh’s man. In consequence, God’s man’s office was thronged with people from all walks of life. On the religious flank, intercessory prayers were heard both in Mosques and Churches. Yet, there was neither cloud, dew nor rain until at the words of Yahweh’s man. Thus, God saved his face when during a sermon at the Gospel Centre on Sunday July 15th, 1986, Paul declared, “I have talked with Jesus. I want to announce to you that Jesus has forgiven us. Within the next hour, the rains shall fall even this night. Let me quickly pray and dismiss this meeting because before some of you get home tonight, you shall be overtaken and drenched in the rains (Lar

[2]

).”

As it was between Elijah and Ahab, so it was between Paul and the Government of Plateau; such that as Yahweh’s man mounts the pulpit declaring the benediction that night, Lar

[2]

notes, “A surreal thing occurred; suddenly there were pearls of thunder and lightning, and from the dark skies, the heavens opened, and it rained cats and dogs. The first rain of the year 1986, was chillingly frightening and one that left many wondering what manner of a prophet Paul was.”

The author of Hebrews pertinently admits, “And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of…,” (Heb 11: 32, ESV). In a similar vein, time fails me to unveil the entire content of Paul’s prophecies and their fulfilment especially on power, political, and economic and his preaching in Northern Emirs’ palaces, in Military barracks and town and market squares. I find comfort however, in the scope of this paper-focused on Paul as an unknown prophet in his lifetime.

6. Conclusion

This paper examines the ancestral pedigree, Christian conversion, call and commission of Paul Gindiri. It demonstrates unequivocally assertions that Paul was a prophet insofar as his prophesies came to fulfilment when he declared them at a time when he perceived the plans of Muslims to de-secularize the nation in favour of Islam. The study contends that the current situation in which some Christian communities in Nigeria have been ransacked, people maimed along with sensitive positions assigned to only Muslims of Fulani extraction are consequences of the Church’s failure to heed the voice of God through prophet Paul. My argument, as I conclude this study, is that true prophecy is validated by its fulfilment. In this light, because all that Paul prophesied came to pass, he is worth all the credentials of a prophet par excellence.

Abbreviations

JETS	Jos ECWA Theological Seminary
OIC	Organization of Islamic Conference
NIV	New International Version
SUM	Sudan United Mission
SIM	Sudan Interior Missionary
ATMN	Amalgamated Tin Mining Company of Nigeria
IDF	Islamic Development Fund
N. P. C. P	Northern Peoples’ Congress Party
ESV	English Standard Version
ECWA	Evangelical Church Winning All

Author Contributions

Reuben Turbi Luka is the sole author. The author read and approved the final manuscript.

Conflicts of Interest

The author declares no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Calvin, John. “Book III: The Mode of obtaining the Grace of Christ,” in Institutes of the Christian Religion. Translated by Henry Beveridge. Michigan: WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1989.
[2]	Dung, Luke Gyang. Paul G. Gindiri: The Firebrand Evangelist. Jos: Ed-Asae Press, 2002.
[3]	Itapson, Emmanuel and Janvier, E. George. A Study of Major and Minor Prophets of the Old Testament. Bukuru: Africa Christian Textbooks, 2005.
[4]	Kajom, Haji David. The Fundamentals of Research Methodology in Religious Studies. Zaria: Ahmadu Bello University Press Limited, 2019.
[5]	Kastfelt, Niels. “African Prophetism and Christian Missionaries in Northeast Nigeria,” in Journal of Religion in Africa. Vol. 8, Fasc. 3(1976). Pp. 175-188. URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1594663 Retrieved 17/5/2022
[6]	Lamorte, A. and Hawthorne, F. G. “Prophecy, Prophet,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. 2nd edition. Walter A. Elwell (ed). Michigan: Baker Academy, 2001.
[7]	Lar, Musa Davidson. and Pam, D. Gyang. Soul Harvest: The Story of New Life for All at 50. Jos: Hamtul Press Ltd, 2013.
[8]	Lar, Musa Davidson. Paul Gindiri: The Man, His Beliefs, His Convictions. Jos: Nigerian Bible Translation Trust, 2022.
[9]	Nwafor, Emenike. “Abuja Declaration of the OIC in 1989,” in Politics-Nigeria-Nairaland. www.nairaland.com/1840446/abuja-declaration-oic-1989 Accessed 7th March, 2017.
[10]	Pam, Dung Lucky. “An Examination of the Abuja Islamic Declaration of 1989: Its Implications on Nigeria’s Democratic Tenets Vis-à-vis Incessant Ethno-Religious Crises,” in Gindiri Theological Seminary (GTS) Journal of Contextual Theology. Vol. 1 [147-166]. ISSN: 23157887. December 2021.
[11]	Thacker, K. and Gener, D. T. “Evangelism,” in Global Dictionary of Theology. William A. Dryness and Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, (eds). IL: IVP, 2008.
[12]	Villiers, de Gerda. “The Origin of Prophetism in the Ancient Near East,” in HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 66(1), Art. 795, 6. http://www.hts.org.za retrieved 17/5/2022

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Luka, R. T. (2025). Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Social Sciences, 14(4), 409-417. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

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Luka, R. T. Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 409-417. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

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Luka RT. Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Soc Sci. 2025;14(4):409-417. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

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@article{10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22,
  author = {Reuben Turbi Luka},
  title = {Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows
},
  journal = {Social Sciences},
  volume = {14},
  number = {4},
  pages = {409-417},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ss.20251404.22},
  abstract = {True prophecy is validated by the fulfillment of a prophet’s declarations, either in his lifetime or in the aftermath of his death. (Mal 2:7; 2 Pet 1:20). In the context of this study, the prophet, Paul Gunen Gindiri, being reviewed, has gone to be with his Creator. This article, therefore, explores the role of Paul Gunen Gindiri, an obscure prophet whose humming thundering voice foretold the de-secularization of Nigeria to promote the Islamization of the country, and Nigeria’s registration in the OIC. Born into a middle-class Pyem royal family, in Pumbush in Pyem Chiefdom, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, Paul’s royal blood and upbringing alongside other experiences of life, not only facilitated his conversion to Christianity but also motivated his passion and perception of life in its entirety. Against this backdrop, he ventured into many things with a view to succeeding far above his contemporaries. His struggle to become a successful business tycoon ultimately led to an encounter with the world out there, the encounter that helped him to experience the other side of life outside his royal domain. Thus, the quest to succeed became the crucible he encountered Christ and his Gospel, and he was determined to convey this message to all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Interestingly, little did he know that his voice was going to replicate the voices of the prophets of old. This study argues that, though never recognized as a prophet in his lifetime, Paul’s predictions are vividly and synonymously crystallized in the brutal pogrom of Christians and the taking over of their ancestral lands. The paper beams a searchlight on the Nigerian socioreligious and socio-political terrains. It demonstrates that the horrible realities are hitting us in the face because the church has failed to heed Paul’s prophetic voice. To establish the ground for this assertion, the study employs a historical methodology to investigate Paul's predictions against the backdrop of Old Testament prophecies, and concludes that the current situation is galvanised by the church’s failure to live out the warnings of an obscure prophet in the shadows.},
 year = {2025}
}

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TY - JOUR
T1 - Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows

AU - Reuben Turbi Luka
Y1 - 2025/07/31
PY - 2025
N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22
DO - 10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22
T2 - Social Sciences
JF - Social Sciences
JO - Social Sciences
SP - 409
EP - 417
PB - Science Publishing Group
SN - 2326-988X
UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22
AB - True prophecy is validated by the fulfillment of a prophet’s declarations, either in his lifetime or in the aftermath of his death. (Mal 2:7; 2 Pet 1:20). In the context of this study, the prophet, Paul Gunen Gindiri, being reviewed, has gone to be with his Creator. This article, therefore, explores the role of Paul Gunen Gindiri, an obscure prophet whose humming thundering voice foretold the de-secularization of Nigeria to promote the Islamization of the country, and Nigeria’s registration in the OIC. Born into a middle-class Pyem royal family, in Pumbush in Pyem Chiefdom, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, Paul’s royal blood and upbringing alongside other experiences of life, not only facilitated his conversion to Christianity but also motivated his passion and perception of life in its entirety. Against this backdrop, he ventured into many things with a view to succeeding far above his contemporaries. His struggle to become a successful business tycoon ultimately led to an encounter with the world out there, the encounter that helped him to experience the other side of life outside his royal domain. Thus, the quest to succeed became the crucible he encountered Christ and his Gospel, and he was determined to convey this message to all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Interestingly, little did he know that his voice was going to replicate the voices of the prophets of old. This study argues that, though never recognized as a prophet in his lifetime, Paul’s predictions are vividly and synonymously crystallized in the brutal pogrom of Christians and the taking over of their ancestral lands. The paper beams a searchlight on the Nigerian socioreligious and socio-political terrains. It demonstrates that the horrible realities are hitting us in the face because the church has failed to heed Paul’s prophetic voice. To establish the ground for this assertion, the study employs a historical methodology to investigate Paul's predictions against the backdrop of Old Testament prophecies, and concludes that the current situation is galvanised by the church’s failure to live out the warnings of an obscure prophet in the shadows.
VL - 14
IS - 4
ER -

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Reuben Turbi Luka

Department of Theology, ECWA Theological Seminary, Jos (JETS), Nigeria

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Luka, R. T. (2025). Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Social Sciences, 14(4), 409-417. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Luka, R. T. Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 409-417. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

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AMA Style

Luka RT. Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows. Soc Sci. 2025;14(4):409-417. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22

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@article{10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22,
  author = {Reuben Turbi Luka},
  title = {Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows
},
  journal = {Social Sciences},
  volume = {14},
  number = {4},
  pages = {409-417},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20251404.22},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ss.20251404.22},
  abstract = {True prophecy is validated by the fulfillment of a prophet’s declarations, either in his lifetime or in the aftermath of his death. (Mal 2:7; 2 Pet 1:20). In the context of this study, the prophet, Paul Gunen Gindiri, being reviewed, has gone to be with his Creator. This article, therefore, explores the role of Paul Gunen Gindiri, an obscure prophet whose humming thundering voice foretold the de-secularization of Nigeria to promote the Islamization of the country, and Nigeria’s registration in the OIC. Born into a middle-class Pyem royal family, in Pumbush in Pyem Chiefdom, Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, Paul’s royal blood and upbringing alongside other experiences of life, not only facilitated his conversion to Christianity but also motivated his passion and perception of life in its entirety. Against this backdrop, he ventured into many things with a view to succeeding far above his contemporaries. His struggle to become a successful business tycoon ultimately led to an encounter with the world out there, the encounter that helped him to experience the other side of life outside his royal domain. Thus, the quest to succeed became the crucible he encountered Christ and his Gospel, and he was determined to convey this message to all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Interestingly, little did he know that his voice was going to replicate the voices of the prophets of old. This study argues that, though never recognized as a prophet in his lifetime, Paul’s predictions are vividly and synonymously crystallized in the brutal pogrom of Christians and the taking over of their ancestral lands. The paper beams a searchlight on the Nigerian socioreligious and socio-political terrains. It demonstrates that the horrible realities are hitting us in the face because the church has failed to heed Paul’s prophetic voice. To establish the ground for this assertion, the study employs a historical methodology to investigate Paul's predictions against the backdrop of Old Testament prophecies, and concludes that the current situation is galvanised by the church’s failure to live out the warnings of an obscure prophet in the shadows.},
 year = {2025}
}

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T1 - Paul Gindiri: A Prophet in the Shadows

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