The Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission) has roped in religious and cultural expert, Professor Musa Xulu as the chairperson of an independent Section 22 Committee aimed at ensuring that the country's religious sector preserves its dignity.
The establishment of the committee comes hot on the heels of the conclusion of the Timothy Omotoso rape trial which recently sparked controversy after the Nigerian televangelist was acquitted of rape charges by the Eastern Cape High Court.
Last week, CRL slammed the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for its poor handling of the Omotoso case.
It also comes on the back of numerous reports of abuse and spiritual transgressions in some of the churches in the country.
On Tuesday, CRL Commission chairperson, Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva briefed the media over the mandate of the committee saying the move is not to regulate and dictate to the church but to restore some order in the religious sector.
"We have made it clear to religious leaders that the intention is not to regulate their pulpit. We have no intention to do that. We have been talking to umbrella organisations in the sector in a bid to consult and engage with them. We are continuing with the consultation process as we want to set up this Section 22 committee. We are saying that we must do things according to the Constitution," she stated.
Citing various incidents of rape and other transgressions in the church, Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the sector cannot be left in the hands of unregistered and unvetted religious leaders who continue to mistreat their congregants adding that the committee will be allowed time and space to conduct its business as an independent body, while the commission only acts as the secretariat.
"Cases of religious leaders out on bail continue to run their churches while they attend court cases. In any other profession, someone would have said, while you deal with this difficult period, stay away from the church. We are saying that is very problematic. We cannot afford that kind of thing. Our act allows us to establish one or more committees in order to assist the commission in the performance of its functions. We are saying, we are setting up a Section 22 committee as it draws from Section 22 of the Act," she stated.
Professor Xulu stated that the religious sector should not wait for a disaster to happen before action is taken to clamp down on spiritual transgression that continue to bring the sector into disrepute.
"This is a proactive initiative to ensure that disasters are avoided, and the Christian faith retains its dignity. We recently (discovered) cult churches in the Eastern Cape. We promise that once we finish the foundational research, we start the committee in full not as church inspectors but some kind of consultation to come up with a document that will give us recommendations," he stated.
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva indicated that by the end of 2026, the committee should have concluded its work and made some recommendations that will help restore order in the church adding that some of these recommendations would be forwarded to the National Assembly to effect a change in how the church conducts its work.
"As the CRL Commission, we are going to support the work of this committee to ensure it stays the course and delivers on time to ensure that the religious sector of this country retains the respect it deserves," she added.