Commission to revive hoax resurrection case
Braamfontein – The Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities wants the criminal case against two members of Pastor Alph Lukau’s church reinstated.
Chairperson of the commission, Professor David Mosoma said they would resuscitate the case against Nkululeko Dlamini and Silungisani Sibanda. They had been arrested after they allegedly participated in the hoax resurrection of a Zimbabwean national at Alleluia Ministries.
The case against Dlamini and Sibanda was withdrawn on July 17 by the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court. In a video, which went viral, a man identified as Elliot Moyo was “resurrected” from a coffin as Lukau prayed for him.
“We have begun dealing with Pastor Lukau’s case. We met with the funeral parlour’s owners. We have been informed that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has withdrawn the matter temporarily pending investigations. We will work with the NPA, who want our participation, and we will look at it differently,” Mosoma said.
The commission said apart from the NPA, it would also consult with the departments of Home Affairs, Health, Social Development and Police.
“The affected parties will be the last to be invited during consultations. We have met with individuals relating to the same story. Some of them are afraid to be cursed if they go against a ‘man of God’. At some churches, there are allegations of sexual abuse taking place,” said Mosoma.
He added the commission was also investigating allegations of the commercialisation of religion by various churches. “Some church leaders use deceptive perceptions to convince people to do things that are seen in society as wrong. The victims then struggle emotionally and spiritually. We want such practices to be criminalised. Our lawyers are working on jurisprudence to develop plans to protect our communities against such church leaders,” Mosoma said.
