Where is Mrs Helen Oritsejafor?
This was the question on the lips of guests who graced the Esama of Benin kingdom, Chief Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion’s 89th birthday celebration. Pastor Ayodele Oritsejafor who was a onetime President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and later Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, an umbrella body for Pentecostal churches, was one of the special guests at the lavish birthday ceremony where he spoke a few words of adulation about the celebrant. Conspicuously missing by his side was his wife, Pastor Mrs Helen Oritsejafor. Instead, a dark skinned, slim looking woman was his companion at the birthday party. Mrs Oritsejafor's absence naturally re-ignited talks about the state of their marriage. THEWILL recalls that late last year, there were talks that the 25-year marriage of the founder and Senior Pastor of Word of Life Bible Church, located in Warri, Nigeria had shockingly collapsed. The former couple was alleged to have been bickering these past few years over allegations of infidelity and fraud, which compelled Mrs Oritsejafor to move out of her matrimonial home and relocate to the United Kingdom.
The rumour that the marriage was troubled began when Mrs Oritsejafor shunned church activities, including the weeklong celebration of her husband’s
50th anniversary in ministry. She released a statement, claiming that all was well with her marriage. But later, she spent the Christmas holiday with her three children abroad away from her husband. She shared photos taken while having fun with them and posted it on her Instagram page. She captioned the photos "Christmas time out with my kids".
Today, a glance at their individual social media pages says it all. They have only photos or videos of themselves individually without the other. Perhaps, it is safe to say, they prefer their arrangement this way. Pastor Oritsejafor got married to Helen in 1997, 13 months after the death of his late wife Stella with whom he founded the World of Life Bible Church on November 15, 1987.