KAMPALA, Uganda — Frank Gashumba has challenged Ugandan religious leaders who claim to possess miraculous healing powers to demonstrate them on critically ill patients in Kampala hospitals, offering Shs200 million as part of the challenge.
The outspoken public personality said he was prepared to embrace Christianity and apologise publicly if a prophet or apostle could accompany him to Mulago National Referral Hospital, Nsambya Hospital or Mengo Hospital and instantly heal a critically ill patient.
“I am ready to get saved today. I stake Shs200 million. I want any of the so-called prophets and apostles to go to the ICU in either Nsambya, Mulago or Mengo Hospital and make a critically ill person get healed instantly, stand up and walk,” Gashumba said during a radio talk show.
He accused some preachers of exploiting vulnerable Ugandans by invoking the name of Jesus to solicit money.
His remarks have reignited debate about miracle claims, religious fundraising and the accountability of ministries that advertise healing services.
Kayanja rejects criticism
Pastor Robert Kayanja, leader of Miracle Centre Cathedral in Kampala, has rejected suggestions that miracles associated with his ministry are fake.
“Our miracles are not fake. They are God-made. It’s biblical that you have to be born again to have them,” Kayanja said, according to Ugandan media reports.
The exchange has sharpened the disagreement between Gashumba and religious figures over whether claims of miraculous healing should be demonstrated publicly.
However, a preacher’s decision not to participate in such a challenge would not, on its own, establish that their claims are false.
Rwomushana questions commercialisation of faith
Political analyst Charles Rwomushana has also criticised what he described as the commercialisation of religious experiences, while maintaining that miracles and signs form part of Christian belief.
“Whereas it is true God, in His mercy, does miracles and signs to teach and save mankind, the Kayanja model of preachers is incorrect,” Rwomushana said.
“It’s incorrect to advertise God like bread,” he added, questioning the promotion of Kayanja’s church facility as a miracle centre.
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Writer Kakwenza Rukirabasheija has also weighed in on the debate, criticising what he portrays as commercialised miracle preaching.
The discussion has prompted questions about how religious ministries promote healing services and whether vulnerable believers may be exposed to exaggerated claims or financial exploitation. Such concerns require evidence when directed at specific individuals or churches.
Faith, healing and accountability
Prayer and divine healing remain important elements of Christian belief, and churches regularly hold services attended by people seeking spiritual support and relief from illness or personal difficulties.
But claims of miraculous recovery can be difficult to assess without reliable medical records, independently verified diagnoses and follow-up evidence. An apparent recovery alone does not establish that a supernatural intervention occurred.
Any hospital-based demonstration would also need to protect patients’ informed consent, privacy and dignity, and must not interfere with medical treatment or encourage patients to abandon professional care.
Gashumba has presented his challenge as a test of the healing powers claimed by some preachers. The wider debate, however, extends beyond the offer of money to questions about religious freedom, freedom of expression and the responsibilities of religious leaders when making extraordinary claims to the public.
No independently verified hospital demonstration establishing the success of the challenge has been confirmed in the reports reviewed.
