2023 election loss led me to become pastor — Banky W

Nigerian singer, filmmaker and politician Bankole Wellington, popularly known as Banky W, has said his defeat in the 2023 House of Representatives election left him heartbroken and prompted him to seek a new direction, eventually leading him into pastoral ministry.

Banky W disclosed this while reflecting on his first anniversary as a pastor in the United States, where he said the electoral setback forced him to surrender his plans to God and reconsider his purpose.

“In 2023 I lost an election. And while the experience inspired me in many ways, it also broke my heart into a million little pieces,” he wrote on Instagram.

The entertainer said he turned to God after the election to seek direction and surrender his ambitions.

“When the dust settled, I took those pieces back to God. And I surrendered,” he said.

According to him, the experience made him question whether he should focus on leadership, entertainment, business or ministry.

However, he said he eventually realised that he did not have to choose one path at the expense of the others.

“And somewhere along the way, I realised that I was asking God to choose between things He had never asked me to separate,” Banky W said.

“It wasn’t either/or. It was all of the above.”

He added that his transition into pastoral ministry had changed his understanding of purpose, saying he now saw his responsibilities as expanding rather than narrowing.

“Turns out, God wasn’t trying to put me in a box. He was expanding my assignment,” he said.

Banky W explained that he now combines his responsibilities as a pastor and professor with his work as a filmmaker, musician and entrepreneur.

He also recalled joking about his possible future in ministry, saying he had previously insisted that the letter “P” in his name, P. Banks, stood for professor rather than pastor.

“I used to joke that the ‘P’ in P. Banks stood for Professor, not Pastor. I guess God heard and said, ‘Why not both?’” he wrote.

The singer also spoke about the challenges of travelling regularly between Lagos and the Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia area to manage his various responsibilities.

“Constantly travelling back and forth between Lagos and the DMV isn’t always easy. But has it been worth it? Absolutely,” he said.

Reflecting on the past year, Banky W said the experience had taught him that setbacks could lead to unexpected opportunities.

“One year later, I’m reminded that sometimes what feels like the end of your story is really just God turning the page,” he said.

“The election didn’t go the way I hoped. But God’s plans for my life are bigger than the plans I had for myself.”

Banky W contested the 2023 House of Representatives election to represent Eti-Osa Federal Constituency in Lagos State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He lost to Thaddeus Attah of the Labour Party.

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