By Watipaso Mzungu
Head of the Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire (ADUS), Bishop Brighton Vita Malasa, has condemned the assault his followers executed on his suspected opponents recently.
Ten members of the Anglican Communion invaded selected parishes, including Liwonde in Machinga, Mmangas in Balaka and Mpinganjira in Mangochi, where they allegedly unleashed terror on priests suspected to be behind calls for the ouster of Malasa from his clerical position.
Father Atley Vumbwe of Liwonde Parish said the members, wore black clothes and goggles, found his children to whom they revealed themselves to be Malasa’s supporters who had guarded the diocesan headquarters at Malosa in Zomba when the disgruntled Anglicans wanted to transfer him to his home village.
“These people threatened to deal with me if I continued supporting that bishop Malasa should resign,” he confirmed.
Father Captain Mphatso Bango of Mmangas parish in Balaka also confirmed to have been visited by the pro-Malasa members.
But Malasa, speaking in an exclusive interview on Wednesday afternoon, said he did not sanction the terror on his enemies.
“Our approach is not revengeful. We are God fearing. It is up to the almighty God to judge us and them,” he said.
Malasa disclosed that although the behavior of his detractors have inflicted much pain on him and attacked his character as a person, he would not want his supporters to pay back evil for evil.
“Some of the matters are in court on character assassination as I also have to protect and defend my image in society. Let us wait for the courts to determine on that. But as we await, I call upon peace in the diocese. Our brothers have chosen to fight, we choose peace. When they hit harder we will smile more,” challenged Malasa.
Meanwhile, the priests whose houses and families suffered torture from the bishop’s followers have reported the incidents to their nearby police stations for safety.
The Eastern Region Police spokesperson, Joseph Sauka, confirmed receiving the complaints from the priests in Machinga, Balaka and Mangochi. However, Sauka refused to divulge more information, saying the investigation is underway.
