Public speaker and gay rights activist, Bisi Alimi has shared a shocking conversation therapy he passed through at the hands of Nigerian pastors.
Alimi’s revelation comes following an article written by investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo. According to Soyombo, he claimed that there are over hundred prophet scammers in a particular church and the numbers keep growing.
Bisi Alimi reveals his ordeal
Reacting to Soyombo’s article, Alimi revealed his experience with conversion therapy and noted that he suffered at the hands of pastors. Alimi said his peace, innocence and dignity were taken away from him. He also revealed how angry and depressed he was. He said all these happened because his mother was trying to cure him instead of his him.
Alimi wrote: “As someone who actually went through conversion therapy within the Celestial Church, everything Fisayo wrote here brought back memories. The lies, the fake prophecies, the dramatic exaggerations and many more.
“I am what I am now because of theseexperiences. I won’t forget what I went through at Foursquare Gospel Church in Mushin. The shame, the horror, the fakedeliverance and look at me now….
“At a very young age, these people took away from me, my innocence, my peace of mind, my self worth and rendered me an angry, depressed, lonely and confused teenager and everyone wonders why I despise religion with everything in my soul.
“And sometimes people don’t understand why I find it really really hard, deep in my soul to forgive my mother or my siblings. The scar I am left with is forever visible…. I might come across strong, but every time I see the scar, I fall back into deep depression and I am talking about things that happened to me over 20yrs ago.
“And before you are get it twisted, I love my mum…. I so very much love that woman, she is a warrior and a strong woman, and those are the qualities I took from her, but I can’t deny the pain she caused me in the name of trying to cure me instead of loving me”.
Bisi Alimi marks 18 years of living with the virus
Kemi Filani News recalls that Alimi marked eighteen years of living with HIV.
He gained international attention when he became the first Nigerian to come out on television to open up about his battle with HIV.
Celebrating, Alimi took to his Instagram page and shared his ‘HIV and Me’ story.
He wrote: “Eighteen years ago, at the National AIDS conference in Abuja and with nudging from friends, I walked into a testing booth for the first time. I walked out with HIV positive test result. Two years before then, I had just lost my best friend to AIDS, and he was around 26yrs.I have been living with HIV since I was 29, this year I clocked 47. Between 2004-2009, I kept quiet about my HIV status cos of shame and stigma.Then I realised, HIV doesn’t kill, it is stigma, the shame and the discrimination that does.Here is to 18yrs of positivity and many more years to come. Please get tested today.”
