United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa has written to the Rhema Church requesting to address its congregation.
”Your congregation, like all South Africans, has a right to hear directly from the political leaders who are competing for their votes and to hear first-hand the commitments that we are making in our election manifestos.
”Thus, I write to you today to request the same opportunity to address the same congregation that Mr Zuma addressed,” Holomisa said in a letter to the church on Tuesday.
The church raised the ire of some members of its congregation after it invited African National Congress (ANC) president Jacob Zuma to address it during a Sunday morning service, reports said.
Some members of the congregation reportedly walked out, apparently in protest against Zuma taking to the pulpit.
However, the church insisted it was non-partisan and that Zuma’s visit had ”nothing to do with the election”.
”He was not here to talk about the manifesto of the ANC, he spoke about poverty alleviation and the role of the church … it had nothing to do with the election,” church spokesperson Vusi Mona said.
He said the church was mulling over the logistics of allowing other political parties to address its congregation, however, it had not yet received Holomisa’s request.
”We haven’t [received the letter] but we have been planning to bring them in midweek, we are looking at the logistics,” he said.
Mona said Zuma was afforded an opportunity to address a Sunday morning service, generally one drawing the most people, because ”he was not talking about the [election] manifesto of the ANC”.
On Sunday, Zuma told the congregation that the ANC needed the support of the church and all faith-based organisations to release the South African people from poverty and all its manifestations.
He said education, and fighting poverty and crime were high on the ANC’s list of priorities. — Sapa