Africa-Press – South-Africa. Congregants of an Eastern Cape church are challenging their newly inaugurated pastor to step down, saying that he can’t lead them because he is a divorcee who remarried while his ex-wife was still alive.
The International Assemblies of God church in Ndevana, outside Qonce, has been rocked by a power struggle between Pastor Sinethemba John and two other pastors who were in the race for the position he now holds.
The other pastors have questioned the transparency of the process and News24 is in possession of a complaint Pastor Welo Gcoba Malangeni lodged with the church’s national head office in Roodepoort, Gauteng.
Eastern Cape police spokesperson Warrant Officer Majola Nkohli said: “Police can confirm that on Sunday morning, 11 September 2022 at about 11:00, members from Public Order Policing were summoned to monitor an alleged very tense internal dispute among members of a local church in Ndevana.”
He said members dispersed hours late after a church service was concluded without any “reported serious incident”.
The church has been without a senior pastor since the death of Pastor Eric Hibana in 2017, who is survived by his wife Nomilile, who is also a member of the church.
Malangeni and Bani dispute the appointment of John on grounds that he is a divorcee and allegedly does not possess a Grade 12 certificate, which is the minimum requirement needed to lead the church.
Pastor Malangeni said it is set out in the church’s constitution that a man who remarries while their ex-wife is still alive is forbidden from leading the church.
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News24 has seen a letter that the national deputy general president of the church, Reverend JC Moyo, penned, in which he acknowledged the dispute Malangeni lodged.
In the letter, Moyo asked Malangeni for 14 days to respond to the 15 August letter.
The installation of John took place on Sunday while Malangeni was waiting for a response from Moyo’s office.
Approached for comment, Moyo responded through a statement released by the church’s general secretary, Reverend Peter Solomon.
Solomon said the matter was being dealt with internally, but added that the installation of John was constitutional.
“The claims that the appointment of the pastor was unconstitutional are also unfounded. All the proper steps were taken before the pastor could be installed at the church. Unfortunately, not everybody can be pleased all the time. The church will deal with this matter internally,” he said.
Solomon also said the “few disgruntled people who made rumblings over John’s appointment were not even members of the local church”.
However, Malangeni disputed this and maintained that together with Bani, they were members of the Ndevana church.
Malangeni told News24 on Tuesday that Moyo never responded to him after the 14 days and that no efforts were made to resolve the dispute.
He said the decision to install John would be regretted by the national head office because he feared it would cause deep divisions among congregants, including pastors.
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“I feel so undermined. This decision also undermines all qualified pastors of the church. The appointment of John is unconstitutional because the rules of the church dictates that a person who remarries another woman while his former wife was still alive is not fit to lead the church,” Malangeni said.
He added that John did not have a Grade 12 certificate.
“I have been calling meetings with the district leadership, but the meetings were never honoured. The recommendation of Pastor John was not transparent. Even Nomilile Hibana, the widow of our later senior pastor, was not informed about these plans.
Malangeni said:
Solomon denied Malangeni’s claims.
He said: “There is no such clause in our constitution regarding the issue of remarriage. With regards to the educational status, the pastor meets our minimum educational requirements.”
News24 approached John for comment but he had not responded at the time of publication.
His response will be added once received.
His ex-wife, Asanda Mathe, 37, said she married John on 1 May 2015 and that he divorced her in September 2020.
She said they were blessed with a baby boy in 2016 who later died.
They also have a 3-year-old son. Mathe said John remarried another woman around October or November last year.
News24 has seen pictures of Mathe and John’s wedding but has not published the pictures as per Mathe’s wish.
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