“Abooooozi” is her tagline.

She is a fashionista. While others have them on their wishlist, she always takes advantage of every opportunity to flaunt her latest Fendi, Gucci, or Balenciaga dress, shoes, or handbag. She is now widely known as Reverend Dr. Mrs. Mama Pat. In her previous life as a traditional priestess, she called herself Nana Agradaa until her sudden conversion to Christianity. But her real name is Patricia Oduro Aseidua. I do not wish to delve into her old life; after all, she has turned a new leaf and is now a ‘Christian,’ in fact, an evangelist. So who am I to judge?

I am, however, intrigued by the practice of her newfound faith. In my past time, I sometimes find myself scrolling through TikTok. That platform does calm my nerves despite it draining my data within minutes. Anyway, that’s a story for another day; back to the case of Evangelist Mama Pat.

She first caught my attention one Monday evening when I’d closed late from work. The driver of the Trotro I was in had tuned in to a radio station where the presenter was only advertising a particular church and its preacher. He was the John the Baptist who was to pave the way for the preacher called “Rev. Dr. Mrs. Mama Pat. For more than thirty minutes, it felt like a hype man getting the crowd ready for a boxing match.

The appellations were legendary. Then it occurred to me that I had seen the church’s billboard on my way to work because I live in Kasoa, and anyone familiar with the area cannot miss the giant billboard of the Heaven Way Church around Weija. Interestingly, the blue and white building sits right behind a popular drinking spot.

Unfortunately, The hype man was still whetting our appetite with his appellations, so I didn’t get to hear Mama Pat preach before I arrived at my destination.

But all was not lost. Mama Pat, the self-acclaimed evangelist, knows how to get her message across. She’s an ardent user of social media. There, she shows off her wealth and dishes potshots at anyone who dares to challenge her.

On social media, you’ll find excerpts of her time on the pulpit, either dismissing a church Elder or cautioning beneficiaries of her free cash to speak up else she would be forced to take back her money. Her use of the English language would get you rolling on the floor.

Jesus Christ would have remained in the grave if he had heard her sing.

How do her members remain composed throughout the theatrics? Her confidence is further boosted by her hype man, who does his work with distinction. I often wondered about her outright elevation to become a reverend and how she earned her doctorate. Mama Pat is evidently in a league of her own.

Her church members are mostly women in the informal sector who see her as the solution to all their financial problems. A promise that has gotten her on the wrong side of the law. In October 2022, Mama Pat was arrested for allegedly defrauding some of her members. She had promised to multiply any money they had but failed to live up to expectations.

Following her arrest, there was chaos at her church. Many of her members who had been allegedly duped massed up at the premises, raining curses on the evangelist, who, despite being in police custody, was still slaying her way out.

She once appeared in court looking like a cover girl of a magazine with bright red lipstick garnishing her lips and, as usual, another bespoke outfit. She was subsequently granted GH¢50, 000 bail by the Accra Circuit Court, and soon things returned to normal. She continues to conduct her services rather comically and gives her fans and foes something to talk about every week. After all, she’s Mama Pat. Aboooooooozigi!

Dear reader, you better watch Mama Pat if you want to destress and need some comic relief. But if the Rhema is your target, you know where to turn.

The writer Eugenia Akorfa Kumi is a broadcast journalist and producer with the Ignite Media Group. You can reach her via email geniakumi@gmail.com.