The Provost of West Africa Theological Seminary,, Pastor Femi Martins has passed on.
Pastor Martins died at the age of 67 according to a statement on Saturday May 28 signed by the Chairman of the School’s Governing Council, Dr. Emmanuel Oluwayemi.
The statement informed that Pastor Martins “joined the Saints Triumphant at the age of 67, in the early hours of Saturday 28th May, 2022 after a brief illness.”
Martins is an alumnus of the Yaba College of Technology,
Accorring to the statement, Pastor Martins had joined the WATS Governing Council even while he was studying for a Masters of Divinity of the Seminary.
“He served meritoriously for several years and was later appointed Director of Communications and Fundraising in the institution until he was appointed as its 6th substantive Provost in April 2019.
Martins was said to be rounding up a Doctor of Ministry program at the famous Asbury Theological Seminary, Kentucky, USA.
The statement describes him as “an astute administrator, devoted Christian and passionate theologian”
WATS from its website
West Africa Theological Seminary (WATS) started in April 1989, when a group of Nigerian and expatriate Christian leaders met to consider the needs of the Church in Nigeria and in particular to determine how to provide sound theological training to as many pastors as possible. Led by Rev. Gary S. Maxey of the US, the group moved quickly to establish a strong, academically competent, non-denominational theological seminary, now known as WATS.
For its first twelve years, the seminary (first known as Wesley International Bible College, and later as Wesley International Theological Seminary) was located in Owerri, Imo State, in eastern Nigeria. In 2000 the governing Council voted to change the name of the institution to West Africa Theological Seminary (WATS). In 2001, the seminary took a giant stride by relocating to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital and the largest city in sub-Saharan Africa.
The growth of WATS has been significant since it first opened its doors, and over the years more than 1,000 pastors and church leaders have been trained including over 200 missionaries sent into Africa, North America, Europe, and Asia. Because WATS is non-denominational, it has attracted students and ethnic groups from a broad spectrum of churches, language groups, and countries. At any given moment WATS usually has students from at least Thirty of Nigeria´s states, Over forty native languages, Ten or more other African countries, and over eighty different church groups