Anglican Church excommunicates Bishop Vita Malasa for disobeying church orders

Woes and drama continues to unfold at the Anglican Church Province of Central Africa in Malawi as the Church of England chapter has excommunicated its former controversial head for the Diocese of Upper Shire (Adus), Bishop Brighton Vita Malasa for disobeying the orders of the church.
In a letter, the Anglican Church discloses that not only the former bishop, Vita Malasa, but also all those who defied the orders of the church in the long protracted disagreements with the higher orders of the church have also been excommunicated and cease to be be members of the church.

Excommunicated: Bishop Vita Malasa.
For a while, there has been a wrangle in Adus, where some church members were demanding the resignation of Malasa following mismanagement of the church, making unilateral decisions when transferring the clergy, and mismanagement of funds.
Malasa has since described the move as laughable and strange arguing it will be costly and damaging to the Church.
Meanwhile, the Anglican  Church has appointed Reverend Canon Father Grant Timpuza Tebulo, as Vicar General of Adus to oversee the administration of the church.
It was reported that on 15 August 2022 the Right Reverend Bishop Brighton Malasa had been offered one billion Malawian Kwacha (approximately $1 million) to take early retirement at the age of 46 from the church.

In 2020 an independent auditing firm engaged by the House of Bishops of the Church of the Province of Central Africa investigated the finances of the Diocese of Upper Shire and its bishop.

The audit came in response to a campaign led by lay leaders to oust the bishop, accusing him of misconduct and abuse of office.

On 14 December 2018 Nyasa Times reported that representatives from 37 of the 41 parishes met at St George’s in Zomba and endorsed a call for Bishop Malasa to go.

It was alleged at the time that the charges leveled against the bishop were financial, moral and political and added that Bishop Malasa had also been been accused of adultery and having children out of wedlock with women other than his wife.

He has been accused of appointing cronies to senior positions in diocesan schools and hospitals, who then seek fees for preferential treatment in admissions and services. The lay leaders also accuse the bishop of diverting funds donated from overseas groups into his own pocket, while also involving himself in partisan party politics.

Meetings between the protestors and the bishop’s representatives overseen by the Primate of Central Africa had proven unfruitful and with the auditors report in hand in January the House of Bishops gave Bishop Malasa until June 2022 to step down.

Bishop Malasa responded he would not go unless he were given a severance package, as required under canon law, that would pay him a salary, housing and car allowance until he reached the age of sixty-five.

The diocese could not afford the bishop Malasa’s demands for him to leave.

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