For years, Hassan Patigi, a preacher and exorcist from Patigi community in Kwara State, has been touring many towns and villages in Nigeria on a self-imposed mission to heal the sick and save the poor. However, his quest has left a trail of abuse, especially in villages across two North-Central states, Niger and Kwara. During his crusade, he orders the torture of men and the public humiliation of women, accusing them of witchcraft. Alongside these unlawful acts, he extorts money from the victims, causing division and disgrace within the families affected. In this investigative report, Yunusa Umar of WikkiTimes exposes the atrocities committed by another self-proclaimed ‘Man of God’ in Nigeria, showing a disturbing pattern of rights violations of the Nigerian citizens without any apparent sanctions from government authorities.
Hassan Patigi, a self-acclaimed preacher and spiritual healer, has been organising crusades in various communities in the north-central region of Nigeria where he invites people for spiritual healing and financial liberation. Patigi would fervently pray over sachets of water and instruct his devoted assistants to distribute the sachets to people suffering from various diseases and afflictions. The list of people who regularly attend Pategi’s crusade includes the blind, the deaf, the lame and women seeking the fruit of the womb. A few minutes after drinking the water, some persons would troop out to claim transformative healing experiences that were invisible to others.
Many Visits, but No Healing
Audu Suleiman, a native of Mokwa local council of Niger State, was one of those who sought help from Patigi. His legs have been paralysed since 2016 and confined to a wheelchair. So, he visited Patigi’s healing centre for healing, but his several visits did not bring him succour.
“I visited his healing centre three times, but no healing happened. He would tell the people with paralysed legs to stand up, but I never did,” he told WikkiTimes.
During the crusade, the healer points finger to the people seeking help at his miracle centre, claiming to be hunting for witches who were on the mission to kill him and other people in the crusade. Nna’ba, a woman from Bukka, a few kilometres away from Mokwa, was completely disgraced in the public on the allegation of witchcraft.
Another victim of the exorcist is Alhaji Saba Alheri who lost his vision to glaucoma. Pa Alheri, 76, had just finished Asr (evening prayer) when WikkiTimes visited him. The reporter met with him sitting on a Sofa and counting the rosaries.
“I went to his centre several times, but nothing happened. I had to later resign my fate to my creator. He gives and takes everything. Whatever comes to me, God knows,” the old man told WikkiTimes.
Earlier, the faith healer had urged the old man’s kin to fetch flowing water in Rabba village, about a few kilometers away from Mokwa, to help him restore his sight.
“One of my children, Ndaba, had to travel to Rabba village around 4:00 am to fetch water as instructed by Hassan Patigi, ” Alheri told WikkiTimes. But it was an effort in futility. Pa Alheri’s sight was never restored.
“Hassan later said if my sight wasn’t restored, the eye of a young Hausa man would be removed and replaced with mine, but I declined. What would I tell my God if someone else’s eyes were removed to replace mine?” the old man said.
He further told WikkiTimes that the faith healer had made several prophecies that turned out to be inaccurate. His daughter, Aisha, corroborated his statement.
“At least, my father visited him three to four times in succession before telling us to get stream water. None of what he pronounced came to pass,” Aisha said. “It was at the fifth time that my father resigned to fate.”
Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness in the world. In 2017, Glaucoma was the leading cause of blindness worldwide and in Nigeria with a prevalence of 16.7 per cent, second only to cataract, according to Dr Adeola Onakoya, head of glaucoma service and acting head of department of ophthalmology, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba.
According to a 2023 report by WHO, nearly eight million people suffer glaucoma in the world making it the number four cause of blindness globally. Glaucoma is incurable, yet Patigi claims he could cure it.
The self-acclaimed healer, WikkiTimes learnt, would stand in the midst of thousands of people, stretching and pointing his finger around the people. Some people, who claimed they had been healed of their affliction, shouted for joy. But many are left wondering about the invisible miracle. Mohammed Ibba is one of those in shock for he could neither talk nor walk despite several visits.
The boy’s mother, Yalami Ibba, told WikkiTimes that her son had been struggling for years to speak and talk.
“I have visited many places seeking help for him. I even went to Pastor Enoch [Adeboye] and other places seeking help, but his problem remains,” she said.
She told WikkiTimes that her family could not afford to take her sick son to hospital for proper examination, lamenting that his father also suffered a waist problem.
“Due to financial constraints, we were unable to visit the hospital to learn about his condition. Instead, we sought out Mallam Hassan in Mokwa, who was known for healing people. Unfortunately, despite his proclaimed healing abilities, he was unable to restore the ability for our son to walk or talk, despite our persistent efforts.”
Patigi Promised to Sponsor Poor People to Hajj, but It’s a Scam
Between 2020 and 2021, when the impact of Covid-19 pandemic was still raging, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria allocated a very limited number of seats to intending pilgrims in Nigeria, yet Patigi promised to sponsor thousands to Hajj.
Mohammed Usman Ndarifun, a leader of Patigi local film academy in Lade, narrated his experience to WikkiTimes.
“The cleric called and promised me Hajj, including Chief Iman and other people. We were about 26 that he promised Mecca seat. He boasted that when I got home I should inform everybody that I will be airlifted to Mecca. But he told us that the ‘lucky ones’ would pay for their forms.”
Ndarifun said he and his team did not buy the form, but many other locals who were also promised free Hajj bought the form at amounts ranging between N500 and N20,000.
Subsequently, the cleric invited those who bought the form to come to Ilorin where they would be airlifted.
Ndarifun said he did not follow others to Ilorin because of the ridiculousness of the invitation. According to him, those who travelled to Ilorin were handed a black nylon instead. They were assured that the content of the black nylon would turn to money which they would use to pay for their flight tickets.
Another victim, Mohammed Ndagi, aged 60, paid N20,000 to purchase the form. Indeed, it was his son who was promised Hajj during his visit to Hassan Patigi’s miracle centre in Patigi. The son instead asked his father to use the opportunity since he could go another time.
“I was among the promised pilgrims that went to Ilorin Airport and spent seven days there. We were later sent away from the premises of the airport. We got to the camp at midnight to meet a man whom Mallam Hassan said would contact us in Ilorin. But the man never showed up despite the fact that we called him several times.”
After spending a week in Ilorin, the man came but never gave us any information. Instead, each applicant was handed black nylon to be kept safe at home. In doing that, the nylon which contained faeces and leaf would turn out to be their promised fund.
“I was also among those he gave black nylon that would miraculously turn to money,” Ndagi told WikkiTimes.
Angry at the way he suffered in Ilorin, the old man cursed that he would never forgive Hassan for his dubious act.
Umar Farooq, an elderly resident of Lade village in Kwara State, found himself among the purported beneficiaries of a pilgrimage to Mecca orchestrated by Hassan Patigi. The news of his selection brought joy, prompting well-wishers to gather at his home upon seeing his name on the list posted on the wall.
However, when Farooq was informed of the need to pay N30,000 for the required form, he expressed his inability to raise the amount. As a peasant farmer, raising such funds was a considerable challenge for him. He appealed to Hassan’s team, requesting N500,000 instead to establish a business at home and support his family, opting for a more sustainable option over the costly pilgrimage. Unfortunately, his plea was declined.
Hassan Patigi continued to assure numerous individuals, both from his village and other places, of their chances to embark on the Mecca pilgrimage, despite the Saudi government’s restrictions. A 2021 report by Al-Jazeera highlighted that foreign pilgrims were prohibited from participating in the Hajj that year due to Saudi Arabia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictions limited the annual pilgrimage to citizens and residents, with a maximum of 60,000 pilgrims allowed.
Fatima Mohammed, another victim, along with her husband, fell victim to the scam. The couple paid N40,000, with the promise of being airlifted for the pilgrimage in the same year. Fatima, a 48-year-old housewife and a relative of Hassan Patigi, revealed that her mother was also affected by the fraudulent activities of her kinsman.
“I went to Ilorin Airport with others who were promised to be airlifted. In our group, there were three of us, including my husband and son. We went to Ilorin, but we were never airlifted,” she said, confirming the accounts of other victims who were given black nylon bags to keep at home.
“I was also given a nylon bag. When he handed it to me, I gave it to one of his wives, Nna Shemi, as he instructed us to keep it at home”.
Source : Daily Trust