Biafra War Aided Scripture Union, Pentecostal Revival in Igboland-Prof Peter Nwangwu

***Igbo Mandate Congress seeks repentance and new revival

The Nigerian Civil War also known as the Biafran War aided the establishment and spread of Scripture Union and Pentecostal Revival in Eastern Nigeria. This was disclosed by Professor Peter Nwangwu in a chat with Rev Dr Obinna Akukwe, Director General of Igbo Mandate Congress IMC in Abuja last week during a mini-conference on how to re-engineer the gospel revival in the South East, Nigeria as panacea to growing social, economic and physical insecurity in the zone.

Prof Peter Nwangwu told Rev Obinna Akukwe that he came in contact with a British Missionary, Bill Roberts, the travelling Secretary of Scripture Union in the 60’ and when the war broke out; all schools were closed down by the Biafran Government to avoid casualties from bomber planes of the Nigerian Air Force. Bill Roberts refused to abandon his work in Nigeria for England, and elected to stay in Biafraland. Bill Roberts at a time felt led by God to start a bible teaching, food and games programme for the youth but did not know exactly how to start.

Prof Nwangwu narrated that “coincidentally God gave me the same vision and I wrote it in a piece of paper and went to see Bill on the said revelation.  Bill asked me what I had in mind and I narrated the vision and showed him the piece of paper, he was amazed that God gave him exactly the same message”

“Bill insisted that we begin soon, and I invited a few friends and on the first day we were 18 persons. It grew to 300 people before Umuahia fell to federal troops. When Umuahia fell, the town was evacuated and the 300 young men scattered around Eastern Nigeria started Bible Study Groups. Bill Roberts, I and few friends were visiting the many groups encouraging and teaching them”

“This birthed the phenomenal and potent gospel revival in the late 60’s and early 70’s in Eastern Nigeria. Almost all the large and dynamic Christian gatherings in Nigeria, including their leaders are beneficiaries of this work by Bill Roberts through the Scripture Union, and I worked closely with the British missionary throughout the critical period”

Prof Peter Nwangwu, a world renowned pharmacologist while defending himself on the accusation by Rev Obinna Akukwe that he abandoned the new revival for greener pastures, explained that his leaving Nigeria for University of Nebraska, US was another act of God. Narrating how it happened, Prof Nwangwu said that he was led to travel to the US for further studies, but had no money to pay for the school fees.

However, he continued as visiting secretary in the SU, until he met a Canadian nurse, Miss Diane North, who worked at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in one of the SU meetings, who inquired of his education and he told her that he felt led to study in the US. Two weeks later, a friend of Diane Ross based in Canada by name Miss Isabel Camp wrote her saying that God is leading her to sponsor a Nigerian student to the US for education. A surprised Diane wrote back that she knows exactly the young man God is talking about, and that was how I got sponsored to study Pharmacy in University of Nebraska.

Prof Nwangwu expressed regret that those they left the work for, at some point, compromised and diluted the revival process and brought the church to disrepute. Prof Peter Nwangwu , a world renowned  pharmaceutical scientist, is currently working on a project aimed at ‘Mindset Re-Engineering of Nigerians’ for the purposes of returning both the church and the populace to a godly driven corrupt free society that will accelerate development in Nigeria.

Igbo Mandate Congress tasked Prof Nwangwu to work with Christian leaders to return gospel revival back to the South East and Nigeria in general and help rid the country of corruption, nepotism and ethnicity.