Pastor Omotosho in court
The dust may not have settled for Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso, who was acquitted by a South Africa court recently as a coalition of persons, authorities and groups are calling for a probe into the acquittal.
While some persons have tagged it a travesty of justice, others argued that the acquittal of the pastor and others charged with him left many dots unconnected.
Among those calling for a review of the case are Chapter 9 institutions, a coalition of civil society groups who are now spearheading an inquiry into the acquittal of the Nigerian televangelist. They insist that South Africa’s witness protection must also be investigated.
Chapter 9 institutions in South Africa are independent bodies established to support constitutional democracy. These institutions, outlined in Chapter 9 of the Constitution. These institutions are the Public Protector; the South African Human Rights Commission; the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic (CRL) communities; the Commission for Gender Equality; the Auditor-General; the Electoral Commission and the Independent Authority to Regulate Broadcasting.
The CRL, gender equality and human rights commissions will lead the inquiry after Omotoso and his two co-accused where found not guilty of crimes, including rape, human trafficking and racketeering penultimate week.
The acquittal was largely attributed to lack of diligence by prosecutors.
The CRL’s Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said that one of the State’s key witnesses, Cheryl Zondi, had to be taken into witness protection after her testimony, but was failed by the system.
“So it was an offer that had to be refused. You can’t tell someone who is seeing a psychologist supporting her, who has systems of friends supporting her, who is studying, that you must abandon your studies. So there is this story called witness protection programme which does not exist.”
