Africa-Press – South-Africa. MK Party secretary-general Floyd Shivambu will not apologise for his visit to the church of fugitive pastor Shepherd Bushiri in Malawi over the Easter weekend.
Shivambu’s visit to Bushiri’s church sparked condemnation from his party and the justice and constitutional development ministry, labelling it a “blatant act of disrespect towards South Africa’s legal system”.
Despite that, Shivambu expressed no regret about his actions.
“One thing I will never apologise for is when I went to see prophet Shepherd Bushiri, and he said, ‘Let’s go to church’. I said, ‘I’ll go to church’,” he said in an interview with Newzroom Afrika.
Bushiri and his wife Mary fled South Africa in 2020 after being granted bail on charges including fraud and money laundering. A Malawian court recently granted South Africa’s request to extradite the couple to face charges, including rape and fraud, and they have indicated their intention to appeal.
Shivambu said attending religious institutions is personal.
“Going to religious institutions is a personal choice for anyone. I go to many religious institutions, including those whose faith I don’t associate with, for different reasons. We have to listen to different people.
“I attended the Jesus Nation Church in Malawi because I wanted to listen to the sermon during the Easter weekend, and I don’t think there was anything wrong with that. If the South African government is looking for Shepherd Bushiri, they know which processes to follow and it doesn’t have anything to do with Floyd.”
While the MK Party distanced itself from Shivambu’s visit, saying it was not authorised by the party leadership, Shivambu insisted he keeps party leader Jacob Zuma informed about his actions. “There is nothing I do without informing the president,” he said.
Shivambu also weighed in on the extradition case, suggesting there is “unnecessary misplaced exuberance” around Bushiri’s matter.
“I’m not responsible for law enforcement in South Africa. There is no court ruling in Malawi within the criminal justice system that links both countries that has instructed that he must be deported to South Africa. If there was such he would be hiding in Malawi, then that would have made him a fugitive. But there is no such.”
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