PORT HARCOURT — Founder and General Overseer of Omega Power Ministries, OPM, Apostle Chibuzor Gift Chinyere, has offered free accommodation and welfare support to Nigerians displaced by renewed xenophobic attacks in South Africa.

Apostle Chinyere disclosed this on Friday at his residence in the Government Reserved Area, GRA, Port Harcourt, saying he had already secured and paid for a mini estate to accommodate affected Nigerians willing to return home.

The cleric said he was moved to act after watching a viral video showing a Nigerian allegedly beaten to death in South Africa.

“I watched a video last week of how a Nigerian living in South Africa was beaten to death by a South African. I could not sleep since that day. Because of that, I told my agent to look for a house, and they found one. I have paid for it today. It is a mini estate,” he said.

He noted that the recent wave of xenophobic violence in South Africa had left many Nigerians living in fear, with several families facing threats, destruction of businesses and uncertainty over their future.

Beyond accommodation, the OPM founder promised additional support, including daily feeding, business assistance for women and free education for children of the returnees.

“Your life, your wife and your children are important. We will feed you once per day while you are living in the free estate. For your wife, we will start a small business for her. For your children, we will enrol all of them in one of the OPM 43 free schools to continue their education,” he said.

Apostle Chinyere acknowledged that many Nigerians abroad were hesitant to return because they feared starting afresh without homes, jobs or financial support.

“I am aware that all your businesses, all your houses, everything is in South Africa, so you are coming back with nothing. But by the grace of God, we will support you. We will teach you skills. We have a multi-skills acquisition centre where we can equip you for a new beginning,” he added.

The cleric expressed optimism that affected Nigerians would recover from their losses, urging them not to lose hope despite their present ordeal.

“All hope is not lost. It does not matter what you are going through in South Africa, it is not over for you. You will bounce back. God will restore you,” he stated.

He also appealed to the Federal Government to assist willing returnees with flight tickets back to Nigeria, saying the church could not shoulder the additional financial burden because of its ongoing humanitarian programmes.

Apostle Chinyere further called on Air Peace to deploy an aircraft to evacuate stranded Nigerians from South Africa free of charge.

The OPM founder recalled that his ministry had previously intervened in humanitarian cases, including relocating the family of late Deborah Samuel to Port Harcourt after her killing sparked nationwide outrage.

According to him, the ministry purchased a 14-unit mini estate for the family, established a business for her parents and awarded scholarships to her siblings.

He added that OPM, through tithes and offerings, currently operates 43 tuition-free schools, two specialist hospitals offering free healthcare, 18 free housing estates and a skills acquisition centre, while over 10,000 scholarships had been awarded locally and internationally to indigent Nigerians.