Church leaders hold enormous power within their organisation and this power can extend to the community in which the church is supposed to serve. However, unscrupulous characters use their influence to cause harm.
Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva, chairperson of the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious, and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission) wants to overhaul the system and have structures that hold such leaders accountable.
In the past, videos went viral of people being told to eat grass or swallow petrol. Additionally, numerous pastors have been accused of sexual assault and rape.
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva told Newzroom Afrika that she believes that churches' concerns cannot be remedied without a legislative framework that controls the sector. She claims that religious leaders must be registered and verified.
"The leaders in the Christian faith must come together and say to the nation, 'this is how we think this problem will be solved'. We know the problem cannot be solved without some legal framework. They must tell us how," she said.
She further stated that the CRL Rights Commission has established a Section 22 committee.
Section 22 committee can refer to either an independent committee tasked with investigating religious transgressions, or a committee established under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) to address security compromises.
The formation of the committee follows the end of the Timothy Omotoso rape trial, which recently stirred controversy when the Nigerian televangelist was cleared of rape charges by the Eastern Cape High Court.
In an earlier media conference, Mkhwanazi-Xaluva remarked that the religious sector should not wait for a calamity to occur before taking steps to crack down on spiritual transgressions that continue to bring the sector into contempt.
"This is a proactive initiative to ensure that disasters are avoided, and the Christian faith retains its dignity. We recently found cult churches in the Eastern Cape.
"We promise that once we finish the foundational research, we start the committee in full not as church inspectors but some kind of consultation to come up with a document that will give us recommendations," Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said.
IOL News