Post by Lekee Unfiltered (@jude_callister)
The debate started after the announcement that Agbara Nla, one of Mount Zion's best-known movies, will return to cinemas on October 1, 2026, more than three decades after it was first released.
An X user identified as Ìfẹ́ṣọlá criticized the film ministry, alleging that its productions have spent years presenting Yoruba spirituality as evil while promoting Christianity as the preferred belief system.
Ìfẹ́ṣọlá wrote:
"Here we go again with the same stupid, tired propaganda. Mount Zion and others need to understand that the era of demonizing Yoruba culture and spirituality is over. People are educating themselves now, and these old narratives will no longer go unchallenged.
Respect your faith, but stop turning Yoruba culture into the villain of every story.
For over three decades, films like this have profited from portraying Yoruba spirituality as evil while presenting foreign religious worldviews as inherently good. Yet many of the social problems facing society today clearly weren't solved by that propaganda.
Mike Bamiloye built a successful career from this formula, moved his family abroad, and now returns to sell the same story again. The difference is that people are now asking questions, and many are no longer willing to accept these portrayals without scrutiny."
Joshua Bamiloye, son of Mount Zion Films founder Mike Bamiloye, fired back.
He rejected claims that the ministry attacks Yoruba culture, saying:
"MZ doesn't demonize Yoruba culture. It celebrates it; the colors, the language, the proverbs, the royalty."
Using the character Abejoye as an example, he added:
"Abejoye became a born-again Christian while still speaking deep Yoruba, bowing before his king, and dropping proverbs that'll make your grandfather nod. Nobody took his culture. The Gospel just took the throne in his heart."
Joshua also rejected the framing of Yoruba spirituality versus foreign religion:
"You framed this as 'Yoruba spirituality vs foreign religion.' We never did. We frame it as Light vs Darkness. Darkness has no nationality."
Addressing claims that Mount Zion built its success by portraying traditional religion negatively, Joshua argued that such films represent only a fraction of the ministry's catalogue:
"MZ has 200+ films. Less than 30% are traditional settings. Your entire argument is built on a minority of the catalog, filtered through a lens of cultural grievance. That's not analysis, that's a feeling dressed up as a fact."
He urged critics to watch the films in full:
"People are asking questions? Good. Watch the films. The full ones. From start to finish. AGBARA NLA drops OCT 1. The name of Jesus is still above every other name, in 1993 and in 2026."
Now let me ask you.
Is Mount Zion genuinely celebrating Yoruba culture or using it as a backdrop to demonize traditional spirituality?
Does framing the debate as "Light vs Darkness" avoid the question of why Yoruba spirituality is consistently placed on the "darkness" side?
Should religious films be held accountable for how they portray indigenous cultures?
Is it fair to criticize Mike Bamiloye for moving abroad while continuing to produce films about Nigerian spirituality?
Who is right here — the critic calling out decades of propaganda or the filmmaker defending his ministry's mission?
Drop your take in the replies. Let us talk.
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