Mboro scares CRL head
JOHANNESBURG: Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Rights Commission (CRL) chairperson Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said she feared for her life following threats made by Pastor Paseka “Mboro” Motsoeneng.
At a briefing at the CRL offices in Johannesburg, Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the worst insult from Mboro was that she had sexual feelings for him.
She said she believed his attacks stemmed from the criminal case she opened against him and that she was a woman.
“Women in leadership have to suffer the undermining of their positions and reducing me to ‘this woman’,” she said.
“One thing I’ve realised about men who threaten a woman is that you must take him seriously and not wait for him to commit his threats.”
Mboro’s alleged threats follow the investigation and release of a report by the CRL that recommended that religious bodies be regulated by a single umbrella body to stop the commercialisation of religion and abuse of people’s belief systems.
The investigation followed reports of irregular practices by some religious leaders, which included pastors spraying congregants with pesticides and forcing them to eat grass and snakes.
The CRL also recommended that religious leaders and institutions be registered and pay tax like any other business and that foreigners wishing to open churches in South Africa undergo strict vetting processes.
Mboro allegedly said Mkhwanazi-Xaluva had seven days to resign or she would see what would happen to her.
“He has said he would come and spray me with his holy water. I have sat here scared. I will be applying for a protection order because I do believe he will harm me or kill me or order his followers to harm me.”
Earlier MkhwanaziXaluva said that summons were handed to various religious leaders, but Nigeria’s Pastor Chris, Prophet Mbiza and Mboro were the only ones who did not honour the summons.
“Pastor Chris said the CRL act was unconstitutional and unlawful. When the act was passed, the commission did not exist so it was not our fight. It’s between Pastor Chris and the government.”
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the commission would not lay charges against him pending the response of the government, but if he failed to have the act declared unconstitutional, the commission would proceed with laying charges against him.
“Pastor Chris has not won any case against the CRL,” she said. “Mboro has made allegations against me, accusing me of being a liar; saying I said he went to heaven and that Jesus had a ‘hot Xhosa’ wife.”
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the commission had sent Mboro a summons requesting him to bring the photographs he allegedly took while in heaven.
“We wanted him to come and explain.” She said Mboro’s allegations had affected her right to faith and insulted her beliefs.
The CRL’s deputy chairperson, Professor David Mosoma, said Mboro had also made threats to the commission, accusing it of corruption and calling for it to be disbanded.
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the report would be discussed in Parliament next month. – ANA