FREE FOOD FROM MOSQUES CAUSES RELIGION CONTROVERSY

EZULWINI – A religious controversy has been ignited by free food parcels delivered by mosques to citizens around the country.

There is a widely held belief by some locals that the food parcels are designed to entice non-believers to the world of Islam, a practice that violates the principles of religion, according to some clerics in the Christian world. “Religion has got to be a matter of choice,” said Bishop Samson Hlatjwako, President of the Swaziland League of Churches. “People must join a particular religion out of their own volition, and no one should be seen to be using others’ poor social backgrounds as fertile ground for recruitment.”

Hlatjwako emphasised that he had particular reservations about a religious body that ‘dangles a carrot at prospective followers’.
Pointing to the fact that handing out food parcels ran the risk of reducing religion into a commodity that could be sold in the market, the clergyman said religion was supposed to be a way of one’s free connection with their deity.

The man of God lashed out at the practice which he views as nothing more than a bait to lure Swazis to mosques. “People do not have even the slightest inkling of what the Islam religion entails in terms of their beliefs and principles. I really do not know what these people are all about, and I doubt there are any locals who have a clear understanding of the religion in its entirety,” the bishop said.

He advised people to be mindful of what they are getting themselves into when joining any religious body. Imploring government to conduct a thorough assessment of new religions introduced in the country, he noted the need to vet religious denominations before they are introduced to people. However, Imam Luqman Asooka of the Ezulwini Islamic Institute Mosque has hotly denied the accusation that they were dishing out food to recruit followers. He said Islam was not about buying membership.

“That can’t be true. We only have different activities taking place in the mosque, like our social programme, to look after those who can’t afford to buy their own food,” he said.
The imam explained that certain criteria were followed when handing out what he called gifts. “Food is given on certain specific occasions and also on a monthly basis to people from poor social backgrounds.”

By way of example, he pointed to the festival of sacrifice, where he said animals were slaughtered and the meat was donated to the poor.
“Everyone can tell you his own story of how they came here. We don’t buy people, but they embrace Islam on their own will.”

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