Six complainants who testified in the unsuccessful criminal case of Omotoso and his two co-accused do not feel safe after his release.
This was shared by the group of women who jointly addressed the media for the first time on Thursday morning. The address took place in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.
They spoke following the court ruling to release the Nigerian televangelist and the two women he was accused with weeks ago. Their charges included rape and human trafficking, among other charges.
Threats from Jesus Dominion International church
Cheryl Zondi, Sarah Mofokeng, Hlubikazi Faleni, Neliswa Mxakaza Makhubela, Anele Mxhakaza and Lerato Msibi shared that they have been receiving threats from the Jesus Dominion International church since the verdict.
In a joint statement, the women expressed disappointment. They claimed that the outcome of this case would have been different if the prosecution had handled the matter better.
“Our lives have never been the same, personally and publicly. We feel threatened, worse now because our faces are seen and visible.
“We rest at ease knowing that we are not ashamed. And we are not defined by our experience and trauma. We are also human, just with a different life story. We fought hard,” they said.
Despite the outcome of the case, the women said they are walking with pride as they managed to keep Omotoso away for eight years.
“And in that we have saved a lot of young girls, women, young boys and men from his horrendous acts. We have also freed some members of that congregation, we witnessed them living their lives differently. Compared to the strict rules of that church,” they added.
Not backing down
One of the witnesses and alleged victims in the case, Cheryl Zondi, vowed to stand by her word. She said even though they have been threatened, they will stick to their truth.
“We did not lie, we had nothing to gain out of lying about something like this. And we are not looking to try and convince anyone that what we said was the truth. Because we know it is.
“Those who are denying what they did to us, we hope they also have their day and stand for something someday,” she said.
Activist also targeted
Culture, Religious and Linguistic Rights Commission chairperson Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva also condemned the case. She said everything that had to go wrong in the case, went wrong.
“The fact that at the beginning there was such a high number of complainants and you end up with 11, should tell you that something went wrong,” she said.
She said they have also been attacked in the industry. However, they are not going to back down at the expense of victims.
Omotoso and his co-accused were acquitted of all charges.
In her ruling, Gqeberha High Court Judge Irma Schoeman said the state had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Great perspective. I hadn’t thought about it that way!