PUDEMO MEMBERS’ SURPRISE VISIT TO JC AS CHURCHES CHALLENGED

MBABANE – A spontaneous visit!

This best describes the pop in by members of the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) this Sunday at the Jesus Calls Worship Centre in Matsapha. The members joined the church in worship. This, according to PUDEMO Secretary General (SG) Wandile Dludlu was throwing an indictment to the church. Dludlu said it was a campaign initiated by the organisation to challenge the church on its silence in what they termed outright injustices happening in the country. These injustices, he stated, included the high level of unemployment, poverty and the deaths that occurred during the unrest. He said the country had never experienced the level of poverty it was currently going through. “If we continue to have structures that behave indifferently, then we will throw the indictment to all of them,” he said in an interview yesterday.

Dludlu said Jesus Christ never kept quiet when there was oppression, particularly by government. “The observation is that the church is too quiet,” he stated. He said the visit had nothing to do with the King’s Interpreter, Pastor Sihle Dlamini. Dlamini recently publicly defended the Tinkhundla System of Government in his social media pages. Dludlu stated that they were challenging the church regarding its silence in the face of injustices, pretending as if nothing had happened. He explained that on each Sunday, they would randomly pick a church that they would be visiting and were inviting other parties to join in the crusade. Dludlu stated that there was no centre or power that they would not challenge. He said the JC was the first point of their call and this coming Sunday, they would pick another church, which they would not publicise, lest they not be welcomed.

Dludlu said the operation was an underground one, adding that they would not unpack the programme. The SG said members of the JC were very happy with their visit, although the leadership was shocked. He expressed belief that church members agreed a lot with the sentiments of the organisation.  When they got to the church, they took their seats like any other member of the church.

Request

They did not request to take to the podium and Dludlu stated that their interest was simply to worship with the congregants, not to make speeches. He said they would attend services clad in PUDEMO regalia. When reached for comment on the spontaneous visit, JC’s Pastor Sihle Dlamini confirmed that the PUDEMO members attended their service. Dlamini expressed hope that the members met their fellow comrades as well, adding that they would task them to make a follow-up on them (visitors).  He said all those who were weary and heavily burdened must come to Jesus who wished none to perish, but that all may come to the knowledge of Christ. “The reception was very warm as always, as JC is a place where freedom reigns, where we minister to all types of people, especially the disappointed, rejected, marginalised and lost in the sun,” he said. Dlamini stated that JC was a place that could be called home.

Meanwhile, Council of Swaziland Churches President Reverend Zwanini Shabalala stated that most of their churches did not have a problem with people who came to worship God. Shabalala said they did not discriminate against people according to their political affiliations. He said even if the parties would want to be on the agenda, they could be gladly slotted in, but the church leadership would obviously want to know what the point of discussion would be.  The reverend said if the parties needed a platform, they could arrange with the leadership the of church they wanted to visit. “We cannot prescribe for the churches on how they should react,” he said.  He said the challenge was when the agenda would be against the church’s principles or disturb order. Shabalala said they were not part of the silent churches as they were always vocal on the current situation, including the unrest.

Eswatini Conference of Churches (ECC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Themba Ngozo, when questioned about the recently launched PUDEMO campaign, said all were welcome in the House of God. “You come as you are but you leave transformed,” he said. Ngozo said everyone who came to church was expected to abide by the rules and regulations of each church without interfering with the programme of the church.

Agreeing

Despite all the other church bodies agreeing to the PUDEMO notion, the League of Churches held a different view. President of the League of Churches, Bishop Samson Hlatjwako, said they represented the interests of His Majesty King Mswati III. Hlatjwako said the King was yet to call the nation to Sibaya and give direction to the people. He stated that usually, the King appointed a committee that would visit the communities and constituencies through a vusela exercise to take the views of the populace. Bishop Hlatjwako said they would not accept the parties in the church for the sole reason that they were awaiting a directive from the King. He stated that in his church, the members of the parties were not welcome at all. According to Bishop Hlatjwako, just like with the Constitution, emaSwati voiced out their views and the same would happen this time around.

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