While the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report into corruption in the Department of Home Affairs highlights individuals such as Prophet Shepherd Bushiri, the root cause of the crisis is not the religious sector but a collapsing state system that has ignored the very people trying to help fix the problem.
So, says the South African National Christian Forum (SANCF) in a press release accusing the Government of trying “to sensationalise the issue to deflect from the fact that their own officials turned a national security department into a commercial enterprise”.
“The SIU report describes a 20-year history of corruption. These fraudulent documents were not manufactured in a vacuum; they were issued by the Department of Home Affairs,” says SANCF president Bishop Marothi Mashahane about reports of a “marketplace” of visas and permits within the department.
He says that the SANCF, under his leadership, had repeatedly approached the Department of Home Affairs and its ministers to propose a formal working relationship to address “systemic” vulnerabilities it recognised years ago. These proposals include acting as a verifying body for religious permits to prevent “marriages of convenience” and falsified financial means”; to co-develop a vetting framework to identify legitimate religious practitioners versus criminal syndicates; and to establish a joint task team to audit the very “sponsorships” the SIU is now investigating.
“Despite our persistent outreach, the Ministry of Home Affairs consistently failed to show commitment or engagement. It is hypocritical for the state to be reactive today when they were dismissive of our proactive solutions for the past decade,” says the press release.
Mashashane says: “The church is a sacred institution. While we do not shield any individual from the law, we reject the narrative that the religious sector is a ‘network of exploitation’. The real exploitation is the department’s refusal to implement the oversight mechanisms we proposed, which allowed these ‘syndicates’ to thrive in the first place.
“We will not allow the image of the church to be dented by a crisis that the SANCF tried to prevent. We call on the Minister of Home Affairs to stop the reactive politics and finally sit at the table with the SANCF to implement the solutions we have already drafted.”
Asked by Gateway News for more information about the SANCF’s proposals to Home Affairs and whether vetting pastors did not risk opening the door to state regulation of religion, Mashashane said:
“Our proposals aim to fix the process before it reaches the point of corruption, without surrendering to state regulation:
- Vetting at the Source: We advocate for religious visitors to apply in their home countries. A condition of approval should be a formal invite from a vetted citizen religious leader who can prove the financial means to support the visitor.
- Accountability for hosts: We propose a mandatory reporting system where the hosting pastor must confirm the visitor’s departure after a 30-day stay. This prevents ‘religious visits’ from becoming a backdoor for illegal permanent residency.
- Internal peer review: to avoid state-mandated registration, we support a voluntary ‘seal of good standing’ system managed by the Church, ensuring leaders meet ethical and financial standards.”
On the question of state regulation of religion, he said:
“Addressing religious freedom concerns:
- Self regulation vs state control: our vetting proposals are designed as self regulation. By proactively cleaning our own house, we remove the state’s excuse to intervene.
- Constitutional protection: Section 15 of the Constitution protects our right to believe and practice. We remain firmly opposed to any ‘license to preach’, as our calling comes from God, not the government.
“The Church’s role is to provide moral guidance and verify the character of our visitors, but the DHA must take responsibility for its own integrity. We will continue to defend the Church’s autonomy while standing for the truth.”
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