McCauley, ANC links to morality debate

2010-02-25 23:12

Cape Town - The debate about a moral code for South Africa which was initiated by President Jacob Zuma will probably be driven by an interfaith group with strong ties to the ANC, but in which none of the country's foremost religious forums are represented.

In church circles this development has been labelled a serious danger to relations between church and state.

Die Burger heard from a reliable source on Wednesday that the National Interfaith Leadership Council (NILC), which was convened last year by pastor Ray McCauley of the Rhema church, may be asked to co-ordinate Zuma's proposed discussions on morality.

The NILC was established in July last year as an organisation consisting of over 20 senior leaders from various religious groups, but upon closer inspection it appears as if none of the foremost religious forums - such as the South African Council of Churches (SACC), the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) or the Jewish Board of Deputies - were approached to join the NILC.

A reliable source who spoke on condition of anonymity told Die Burger that the NILC is essentially a virtual organisation which pretends to be a body which speaks on behalf of all religious orientations.

"But this is not the case. Some of the biggest churches - for instance the Zion Christian Church (ZCC) in Polokwane - are not part of the NILC."

Last year, after it became known that the NILC had met with Zuma, the SACC said in a statement that they had not been approached about the assembly of the NILC.

"It would appear as if the NILC is duplicating the work of the National Religious Leaders' Forum (NRLF)."

Strong affiliation

Die Burger was told by a reliable source that the NILC was established precisely because the SACC did not agree to requests by the ANC to become an alliance partner of the governing party.

Furthermore, it seems the NILC does have a strong affiliation with the ANC.

The Mail & Guardian earlier reported that the ANC chief whip, Mathole Motshekga, and two other ANC MPs - Ebrahim Rasool, former premier of the Western Cape, and pastor Ntabiseng Khunou, an ANC MP from the Free State - are members of the NILC. Khunou is also the organisation's official spokesperson.

Earlier this month the NILC stood up for Zuma when it became known that he has an illegitimate child. The organisation asked in a statement that South Africans "forgive" Zuma and "move on".

Die Burger has also established that the NILC's media releases are issued by Motshekga's office.

Meanwhile, the interfaith organisations who spoke to Die Burger said they welcome the debate on morality, on condition that it isn't politically motivated.

Motshekga said it is not for him to say who should lead the debate about a moral code. "It's the president's decision."

When asked whether he feels the NILC should lead the debate, he answered: "Since the NILC is a civil organisation, I can't see why it shouldn't be involved."

The Presidency could not be reach for comment.


Read more on:    sacc  |  nrlf  |  zcc  |  aanc  |  nilc  |  ray mccauley  |  jacob zuma  |  mathole motshekga  |  ebrahim rasool  |  cape town  |  politics
NEXT ON NEWS24X

Read News24’s Comments Policy

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Comment on this story
90 comments
Comments have been closed for this article.
 

Inside News24

 

Latest comment in South Africa

Zman Zee says... Who's no.1 exactly? Zuma perhaps? Read the article...

 
Traffic
Lottery
 
  • Thursday Citrusdal - 16:22 PM
    Road name: N7
    ROADWORKS - stop / go controls in operation between Citrusdal and Clanwilliam (until 2014)
  • Monday Ventersburg - 05:24 AM
    Road name: N1
    ROADWORKS - construction works are underway with a deviation in operation just north of the town centre
 
More traffic reports...
 

Jobs [change area]

Property [change area]

Travel - Look, Book, Go!

Southern Sun - Maputo

Spend 3 nights and pay for 2 at Southern Sun - Maputo for only R4 621 per person sharing. Includes accommodation, return flights, airport taxes and airport transfers. Book now!

Kalahari.com - shop online today

Buy Gordon Ramsay’s ultimate cookery course book + Bokke Se Komuis for FREE!

Buy Gordon Ramsay’s ultimate cookery course for just R368 and get Bokke Se Kombuis, valued at R180, for FREE! Offer valid while stocks last. Buy now!

Save on Bear Grylls survival tools!

Are you a grrrr rugged and manly man? Or looking for a gift for one? Check out these awesome Bear Grylls survival tools at great prices. Buy now!

Hot and exclusive Coby 7" wifi tablet – only R1299.95

Don’t miss out on this super hot deal of the week, save R300 on the Coby 7” tablet! Dispatched within 24hrs + free delivery. While stocks last. Buy now!

Up to 20% off all the hottest gaming pre-orders!

Get it while its hot! Save up to 20% on the hottest games on pre-orders including Grand Theft Auto 5, Fifa 14, Grid 2, Battlefield 4 and more. Pre-order now!

20% off the latest music releases

Get 20% off hot new music releases, including To Be Loved by Michael Buble, Now 63, The 20/20 Experience by Justine Timberlake and many more. Offer valid while stocks last. Shop now!

OLX Free Classifieds [change area]

Blackberry z10 (1 day old)

For Sale, Cell Phones - Accessories in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 13

Urgent Sale

Vehicles, Motorcycles - Scooters in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 13

Aupairs

Jobs, Au pairs & nannies in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 12

Samsung Galaxy S II I9100

Vivid.Fast.Slim. Don’t contain yourself. Look beyond the limits of yesterday’s...

From R3495.00

I'm shopping for:

Horoscopes
Aquarius
Aquarius

Chances are that your partner is competing with your job to get your attention today. Although you are passionate about your...read more

There are new stories on the homepage. Click here to see them.
 
English
Afrikaans
isiZulu

Hello 

Create Profile

Creating your profile will enable you to submit photos and stories to get published on News24.


Please provide a username for your profile page:

This username must be unique, cannot be edited and will be used in the URL to your profile page across the entire 24.com network.

Settings

Location Settings

News24 allows you to edit the display of certain components based on a location. If you wish to personalise the page based on your preferences, please select a location for each component and click "Submit" in order for the changes to take affect.








Facebook Sign-In

Hi News addict,

Join the News24 Community to be involved in breaking the news.

Log in with Facebook to comment and personalise news, weather and listings.