Malawi CSOs stand up for Bushiri: Tell State agencies in South Africa to stop persecuting him

Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Malawi have called on State agencies in South Africa to come out in the open and officially communicate to Prophet Shepherd Bushiri regarding media reports that he is being investigated by the Hawks.

South Africa media has been carrying stories alleging that Prophet Bushiri is being investigated by the Hawks—something Bushiri’s legal and media team say they don’t have any official communication from investigating agencies.

Led by the chairperson of Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC) Robert Mkwezalamba, the CSOs made the call during a press conference on Monday morning in Lilongwe, Malawi.

According to the communique Nyasa Times has seen and signed by 12 various CSOs including the business communities in Malawi, the CSOs say they are gravely concerned with the way Prophet Bushiri is being embarrassed, persecuted and fought by South Africa’s State agencies mostly the Hawks and the Police.

Recently, media is South Africa has been awash with stories that the Hawks and the Police are investigating Malawian born, but South Africa-based Prophet Bushiri on allegations of money laundering besides other claims.

Without fighting against the investigations which the CSOs welcome as important in bringing out facts, the CSOs, however, say they have observed ‘worrying trends and suspicious elements in the way the Hawks’ investigations of Prophet Bushiri are being handled and again the general spectre of how the ECG leader is being treated in South Africa’.

Mkwezalamba, who read the statement during the press briefing, said Prophet Bushiri is being accused of coming to Malawi on private jet monthly to drop illegal money yet he has only been in Malawi three times in the past 8 months.

“Besides the fact that all his trips are flagged and highly monitored by the South Africa State, two of the three times he came to Malawi in the past 8 months, we have information that he was thoroughly searched as if he is a criminal without a search warrant but they found him and his jet with nothing. This is against his rights to freedom of movement and personal privacy as accorded in the South African Constitution,” said Mkwezalamba.

He added that the CSOs are, again, saddened with the news that while in USA a week ago, Home Land Security in US took all his phones and laptop with passwords in the name of being sent by South African police whose objectives or findings were never shared with him.

The CSOs also expressed concern with the money laundering accusations of Prophet Bushiri are being handled.

“We are aware that money laundering is a serious offence anywhere in world. However, we are surprised that, up and until now, Prophet Bushiri has not been officially communicated to by the Hawks regarding these investigations. This is quite surprising and suspicious for the Hawks to let the suspect read about their fate in the media.

“We find this not just unprofessional, but also retrogressive as it has the effect of traumatizing the Prophet including affecting his integrity as well as reputation as a Man of God whose dealings are always just and publicly shared through the Prophetic Channel and other publications. Such persecutions cannot continue.

“Truth be told, we are being tempted to conclude that there appears a grand conspiracy between the Hawks and the media aimed at tarnishing the image of Prophet Bushiri. You can even sense the conspiracy in the articles published against Prophet Bushiri which do not carry the names and faces of the people advancing the accusations,” reads the statement.

The CSO have, thus, said that with these suspicious elements and activities against Prophet Bushiri, “we have no doubt that we sense a deep level of xenophobia going on against our citizen as none of the elite SA pastors or Prophets receive such attacks”.

They have since called for annimmediate stop of Prophet Bushiris persecutions or have him communicated to of all the investigations in the newspapers so that he must be aware.

The activists have also appealed to the South African public to embrace and support Prophet Bushiri God-given mission to preach the gospel and, through his businesses, to help lift millions out of poverty.

“We appeal to them to rise up against the spirit of xenophobia which distorts the lovely story of the Rainbow Nation. We also appeal to South African Police and secret operatives, to ensure they perform their duties in an acceptable manner and to the best of their professional expectation,” reads the statement.

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