Some netizens have criticised Siju Iluyomade, wife of the Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, City of David Parish, Lagos State, where the former Group Managing Director of Access Holding PLC, Herbert Wigwe, worshipped before his death.

This followed a lavish 60th birthday party she threw at Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos State, about a week after he died.

The Eagle Online recalls that Wigwe; his wife, Doreen; eldest son, Chizi; and a former Chairman of the Nigeria Exchange PLC, Abimbola Ogunbanjo, died in a helicopter crash in California, United States of America.

According to a Netizen, Chukwudi Iwuchukwu, Pastor Siju Iluyomade broke all tenets of modesty and decency by throwing the party as the right thing and common sense dictate that it is offensive and not appropriate to throw a lavish party a week after the death of such a man whose tithe and benevolence sustained her husband’s ministry when his body is still cold.

Furthermore, the netizen also described Wigwe’s Christian brethren at the church as Judas Iscariot for moving from mourning Wigwe on to the dance floor, stressing that they could not even wait till he is buried and settled into the darkness of the grave before they throw caution to the wind to show their real nature.

The statement continued that it was shocking to see prominent members of the RCCG comprising family members, church elders and friends of late Wigwe troop to the dance floor in celebration of the wife of the pastor as she celebrated her 60th birthday.

The post, on the Facebook page of Iwuchukwu, reads in part: “Being the church where Wigwe worshipped before his death, not a few people expected the church to mourn him, for at least, a considerable period but the RCCG authorities clearly had a different opinion about this thus they rallied around Siju as she threw a colourful party, more or less a carnival, to celebrate her diamond anniversary.

“The party had in attendance both Lagos and Nigeria’s high society, celebrities and celebutantes as a  viral video of the party shows prominent afrobeats musician, Flavour, singing the praises of the celebrant as she danced amid a bevy of fellow dancers and guests on the dance floor.”

Iwuchukwu gave his account of the life the late Wigwe had lived and posited why it is wrong for Dr. Siju to have thrown such a party like carnival a week after his death.

It read: “Before his death, Wigwe was a faithful member of the church where Siju’s husband pastored and the name of the RCCG parish is City of David,Victoria Island, Lagos.

“Any time Wigwe was in town, you must have seen him in church on Sunday. He does not miss it. But beyond his physical presence, he used his goodwill and resources towards the growth of the City of David parish and the advancement of God’s work.

“The late Wigwe was one of the biggest tithe payers in the City of David parish because of his vast wealth and net worth. He was a bank owner, so his tithe runs into millions of naira but it went beyond paying tithe.

“The City of David has the best and finest church buildings in the whole of Nigeria and the best among RCCG parishes.

“Wigwe was among those that God used to make it happen.

“He was the chairman of the building committee when the church was building that building and he pulled all stops from donating his money to rallying his wife, Chizoba, who died with him, to donate too.

“When the City of David ran out of funds to continue the project, it was Wigwe who used his influence to facilitate a loan from Access Bank for the building to go ahead  because without his intervention, the project would have been an abandoned elephant project.

“He went as far as paying for two office spaces for Access Bank at the church building, and he paid a 5-year rent for the two office spaces. This was done when the project was still a greenfield project, and that is remarkable.

“Just before he died, two weeks ago The City of David parish could not service the loan that Access Bank gave them, and the bank was breathing on their necks to pay up.

“It was still the same Wigwe who bailed them out by giving them a bail out of 1 billion naira in interest-free loans, which they are expected to pay back to him this year.

“Unfortunately, he died before they could pay back the loan.

“Dr. Siju Iluyomade is the founder of the Arise Women Conference. The late Wigwe was one of the biggest donors to this cause and her NGO, and because of his deep pocket, the conference has evolved to be an annual conference that attracts Nigerian women all over the country.

“After all this charity and benevolence, the right thing and common sense dictate that it is offensive and not appropriate to throw a lavish party a week after the death of such a man whose tithe and benevolence sustained your husband’s ministry when his body is still cold.”

The Netizen lamented that he wondered what Wigwe would be feeling in the spirit world after seeing such a carnival go on at the Eko Hotel Lagos, just a week after his death.

Iwuchukwu added: “I wonder what Wigwe would be feeling in the spirit world after seeing such a carnival go on last night at the Eko Hotel Lagos, just a week after his death.

“This is a lesson for the living.

“You are only as important as your relevance and influence ; once you are no longer there or present, the people that you moved the world and mountains for will move on.

“It is a dog-eat-dog world, my friends, and this is why it is important to put yourself first.

“Be unapologetic and selfish about putting yourself first.”

Meanwhile, some Netizens also argued that Pastor Siju had a right to celebrate her birthday irrespective of Wigwe’s death.

They dismissed other commentators’ argument that the action of Siju and RCCG showed their lack of empathy and zero emotional intelligence.