ROW: Prophet Bushiri And Wife Smuggled Out Of SA In Presidential Jet?

By SMN Correspondent

CAPETOWN, South Africa|SHIFTMEDIA| A silent diplomatic row is brewing between South Africa and Malawi over reports that Malawian born prophet Bushiri was smuggled out on South Africa in a Presidential jet.

South African government is now investigating reports in local media regarding how Shepherd Bushiri and his wife, Mary Bushiri left their palatial home in Cape Town.

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Reports indicate that Bushiri and his wife were reportedly smuggled out of SA in a Malawian president Lazarus Chakwera’s hired jet.

This allegation has been swiftly denied by the Department of Home Affairs in South Africa.

Surprisingly, the day Malawian president Chakwera arrived for talks with president Cyril Ramaphosa, is the day Bushiri and wife reportedly went “missing”. Bushiri was due to appear in court for bail extension over $102 million fraud related case.

The South African court has since forfeited his 2 million Rand property for jumping bail.

Now what is raising hairs are reports that Bushiri who is believed to have funded the fellow pastor (Chakwera’s) campaign was reportedly given a diplomatic passport to aid his easy exit out of SA.

According to the Independent, they were reportedly fetched from their Centurion home in a Malawian embassy vehicle while Chakwera wrapped up his meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa.

City Press on Sunday also revealed that before escaping last week, the police discovered that the Bushiris had made at least 20,000 transactions from their business and personal accounts.

Last week, Sunday Times reported that Chakwera’s flight was delayed for seven hours, which raised questions about whether this had anything to do with the couple’s escape.

A senior government official said there were suspicions that Chakwera had used his visit to Ramaphosa to smuggle the Bushiris out of the country. He said the possibility of his involvement could not be ruled out as Bushiri was said to have funded Chakwera’s presidential campaign.

The official alleged that one of Chakwera’s delegates called Dirco, saying they had “challenges leaving”. He said an official may have helped them, not knowing that they were smuggling the couple out of SA.

Minister denies

The minister of international relations & co-operation Naledi Pandor on Sunday denied that her department had any involvement in helping the Bushiri’s escape. The minister said she was concerned that she was not asked for comment, and demanded the retraction of the article.

“Officials in Dirco work diligently and are entitled to do so without having their reputations tarnished by unnamed sources that hide in the shadows. It is concerning that Dirco was not afforded an opportunity to respond to these serious allegations by the newspaper concerned.

“Minister Pandor invites the newspaper to issue an immediate retraction of the wholly false suggestion that she intervened in this matter. To that end, the department will be seeking legal advice,” said Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela.

DA wants answers 

The official opposition on Sunday said it wants home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi to appear before parliament for a second time to provide answers regarding the couple’s escape. The DA wants the minister to provide parliament with CCTV footage from the Waterkloof Air Force Base of the hours leading up to the couple’s escape.

Citing the Sunday Independent report, the DA said claims that the Bushiris received assistance from the SA and Malawian governments should not be ignored.

“The seriousness of this situation cannot be overlooked, especially since this is not the first time an incident of this nature has happened. In 2015, Omar al-Bashir skipped the country, despite facing charges of war crimes. And in 2017, former Zimbabwean first lady Grace Mugabe fled SA despite facing criminal charges over allegedly assaulting a model in a Johannesburg hotel,” the party said in a statement.

SA government denials

Acting presidency spokesperson Tyrone Seale denied that the Bushiris left with Chakwera. He also said that the controversial church leader was not discussed in the meeting between the two presidents.

Motsoaledi last week assured MPs that the Bushiris did not escape in Chakwera’s plane.

“The passports were matched with the photos and faces of the members who were there and they went into the plane. Before the plane departed, it was definitely searched for the second time. Having convinced themselves there was no sign of Mr and Mrs Bushiri, the plane was allowed to depart,” he said.