She is the wife of the famous prophet, Shepherd Bushiri, a self-proclaimed prophet who is popularly known for doing miracles and healing people.
Mary and her husband are both church leaders and have said that they are doing the Lord's work. The Bushiri's have been making headlines way before they were arrested due to fraud charges of over an R1 million.
The leaders of the Enlightened Christian Gathering Church have been hated by thousands of people while loved by many as well.
Although they have been called names for years now, that has never stopped them from doing what they do best which is spreading the gospel. They have stood firmly against the public hate and regarded themselves as influential leaders who serve with nothing but integrity.
Prior to the couple getting married, Mary was known as Mary Zgambo.
Although they have been called names for years now, that has never stopped them from doing what they do best which is spreading the gospel. They have stood firmly against the public hate and regarded themselves as influential leaders who serve with nothing but integrity.
Prior to the couple getting married, Mary was known as Mary Zgambo.
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| Mary Bushiri |
Shepherd stole her heart and made her Mrs Bushiri in a beautiful wedding ceremony at Mzuzu Stadium in 2011, and ever since the couple has been inseparable. The two have been serving a couple goals as they do everything together, Mary has been beside her husband ever since.
Many know Mary as Shepherd Bushiri's wife, a Prophetess who serves alongside her husband but she is more than that. Mary is a chartered accountant.
Everything You Need To Know About Shepherd and Mary Bushiri:
Shepherd Bushiri (born 20 February 1983) also known as Major 1 or Prophet Shepherd Bushiri, is a Malawian Christian preacher, motivational speaker, author and businessman from Malawi.He founded and leads a Christian non-denominational evangelical church known as the Enlightened Christian Gathering. The church has headquarters in Pretoria, South Africa with branches in other African countries and around the world. Tens of thousands of people are attracted to the church every day. He describes the church as a Prophetic Ministry based on the principle that "God cares and loves people and wants to speak directly to them."
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Bushiri also runs a global investment company, Shepherd Bushiri Investments, based in Sandton near Johannesburg, with interests in mining, real estate, an airline and other entrepreneurial enterprises. According to Bushiri, he ventured into business to support his family as he does not believe the church must support his family.History:
Shepherd Bushiri grew up in Mzuzu, which is in the northern part of Malawi. His mother gave him the name Shepherd due to the complexities around his birth, acknowledging the Lord as her Shepherd. He travels around the world holding crusades and meetings focused on teaching, prophesy and healing.In August 2018, he was invited as a guest of honor at South Africa's National Day of Inter-faith prayer held at the Emirates Airline Stadium in Johannesburg, during which he offered prayers of reconciliation and unity. The event was attended by South African leading clergy and South Africa's Vice President David Mabuza.
Given Name Controversy:
Claims that Bushiri was born Chipiliro Gama in The Citizen in February 2019; "an invoice mistakenly sent to Baloyi Attorneys did not use the popular name Shepherd Bushiri, and instead called him Chipiliro Gama." A report in The Sunday Times newspaper for February 2019 stated that "Bushiri's father, Huxley, and mother, Cristina, a Zambian by birth raised him as Chipiliro Gama".In September 2019, Bushiri's spokesperson and communications director, Ephraim Nyondo, refuted the allegations.
Career:
Shepherd Bushiri is now known as one of the wealthiest pastors in the world and one of the most affluent people in Africa.Bushiri is mentored by multimillionaire businessman and leader of Good News Church in UK, Prophet Uebert Angel. Bushiri is said to be the most celebrated and popular Spiritual Son of Prophet Angel. Angel has other Spiritual sons including, but not limited to, Africa-based Romeo Marom, Bulgaria-based miracle worker Maksim Asenov, leader of Imperial City Church, Isaiah Brian Sovi and South Africa-based Apostle Miz Tancred.
Christian Gathering:
The Enlightened Christian Gathering is reported as one of the fastest-growing churches in Africa and the world.Bushiri is the founder of the Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG). He has established and leads churches in South Africa, Malawi, Ghana, South Sudan and other countries. He has been interviewed for television by the BBC, and received coverage also in Al Jazeera, New African, Nigerian Tribune, and African Leadership magazine.
On the night of 28 December 2018, three people died and nine others were injured during a stampede at the ECG Church caused by people trying to avoid a thunderstorm. Bushiri's spokesman Maynard Manyowa told media that "The ECG Church is not his [Bushiri's] church, it belongs to South Africa and South Africans." Manyowa also said that the deaths were "not his [Bushiri's] problem, but a problem that the church must deal with."
Bushiri's services attract over 100000 viewers via his personally owned television station, social media and in-person attendees. His largest gatherings are held on New Year's Eve at FNB Stadium, South Africa with over 95000 attendees both in 2016 and 2017. The FNB Stadium is the largest stadium in Africa.
His church gatherings have not always been well received with the one extreme protest being the destruction of "overflow tents" by arson in February 2020.
SB Investments:
Shepherd Bushiri's company, SB Investments (Pty) Ltd, is an international investment company, based in Sandton near Johannesburg, with interests in oil, mining, real estate, transportation and the hospitality industry. On 20 February 2018, Bushiri launched one of his hotel investments, a multimillion-dollar property in South Africa. SBI has a special interest in supporting governments including economies of fragile state countries. In 2017 Bushiri was hosted by the Vice President of South Sudan – Dr James Igga, Reserve Bank Governor and Finance Minister during which a business deal was signed in the area of infrastructure and development. In 2018 Shepherd Bushiri was given the prestigious award and induction into the CEO Hall of Fame by the African Leadership Magazine.Charity Work:
Shepherd Bushiri has been involved in many charitable works around the world, including work in Malawi, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Botswana and South Africa. He formed a humanitarian organization called “Shepherd Bushiri Foundation” with Duncan Zgambo as the CEO, where he provides for the needy and less privileged. He provides charitable donations including livelihood support; educational support for orphans; humanitarian relief in the form of food subsidies. In 2017, he took maize to Lilongwe and spent K85 Million in Malawi Charity. He has invested in young people through his sports academy and through Major 1 Records which sponsors and show-cases up-and-coming music artists. On 18 July 2018, Nelson Mandela Day, Bushiri launched an Africa-wide school adoption program with donations to a local school. The event was attended by Senior Government Officials from the South Africa Ministry of Education..In March 2019 Bushiri visited Alexandra, where a fire had burnt over 100 shacks. He said that he would donate R400000 (equivalent to approx $29000) to emergency services "that should be used for the children in the area.".
Other
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| Shepherd and Mart Bushiri |
According to various reports thousands of people bought the cheap maize at various sites within Malawi.
CONTROVERSIES
HIV/AIDS:
Bushiri has been accused of making unproven claims of "curing HIV." He countered that he has never performed a miracle in his life because only Jesus can. Nevertheless, due to claims of unproven miracles, Botswana temporarily banned him from entering the country before courts ruled the ECG church is allowed to continue operating in the country.Initially, he was free to enter the country at will but now is required to apply for a visa every time he wants to enter Botswana.
Fees for public dinners
The fees charged to attend some of Bushiri's public dinners have been questioned. It was reported that he charged up to R25000 for a seat at his table at a gala dinner held on 23 December 2017 at the Pretoria Showground, and N$1000 for entry to a dinner held in Windhoek, Namibia in January 2016. Bushiri in several news interviews categorically refuted the published extreme pricing claims for "so-called gala dinners" calling them "fabricated."Investment schemes
Allegedly, during a church service in March 2017, Bushiri announced that he wanted to make members of his church into millionaires. Congregants were then told via email to invest at least R100 000 in cash with him within the next two days and were promised a 50% return within 30 banking days. Those that could not bring cash with them to the church were sent banking details of a company, Rising Estates, the directors of which are Bushiri lieutenants, Willah Mudolo, Duncan Oduor Otieno and Kit Ching Catherine Kum. Almost two years later, the people who gave Bushiri money claim to have not received anything back.The investment scheme appears to be linked to Palambano Investments as six congregants from Bushiri's church claim they were told that the money they donated would be invested in Zambia in "gold minerals" as part of a Palamabo investment scheme. The congregants provided proof that the money had been paid into the ECG's First National Bank account.
East London, Eastern Cape, police spokesperson Capt Mluleki Mbi confirmed that a case had been opened against Palambano Investments and its directors in response to a complaint by Nombeko Dwesini, one of Bushiri's congregants.
Paternity
It is alleged that in 2010 Bushiri impregnated a teenage Malawian woman, whom he met in 2007 in their home town, Mzimba. It is further claimed that he bribed her with a cheque for 80000 Malawian kwacha (about R1500) to have an abortion but that the cheque bounced. The woman subsequently gave birth in 2011 to a girl who "is the spitting image of Bushiri and it is widely known in the district that he is the biological father,” according to the father of the woman. The woman is now married and the family alleges that they "kept quiet out of fear."The village that the woman and child live in broke the news before the family approached Bushiri. Bushiri claims that the cheque was stolen from him and that, on the day the woman claims he made her pregnant, Bushiri was at a police station dealing with an attempted hijacking. In 2018, the mother again tried to get maintenance via the courts but was unsuccessful. Family members of the girl claim that Bushiri admits to the allegations in private, despite his public denials and have demanded a paternity test. His lawyer, Terrence Baloyi, did not respond to emails, text messages and calls from City Press seeking comment.
Non-payment for clothing
Darlington Manyawu, a businessman based in Hong Kong, claims to have sold Bushiri clothing to the value of R450000 but had not received payment for them. He claims that the clothing was given to Bushiri's spokesman, Maynard Manyowa on 28 June 2019 and Bushiri has subsequently been seen wearing the clothes at public church gatherings.Ephraim Nyondo, the spokesman for the Enlightened Christian Gathering church, did not dispute the claim but stated that the matter did not concern Bushiri as it was between Manyawu and Manyowa.
Radio Veritas
The South African Catholic radio station, Radio Veritas, was reprimanded by the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA) for airing a one-sided programme laced with allegations against Bushiri on 1 December 2019. Bushiri had claimed that the broadcast was "malicious, damaging to his reputation, libellous, contained lies, was unfounded" and did not afford him the right of reply. The BCCSA noted that Veritaas Radio had contravened the broadcasting act in not presenting the opposing view from Bushiri.Infidelity
On 20 February 2020 former deputy finance minister of Zimbabwe, Terence Mukupe, accused Bushiri of an adulterous affair with Mukupe's musician wife, Rachel, which resulted in the impregnation of Rachel. He claimed to have WhatsApp evidence of his wife and the preacher arranging to meet for "sex romps in Malawi, Pretoria and Rustenburg". He also claimed that Bushiri had taken R100000 (approx $7500) from him to finance his church, Enlightened Christian Gathering.Bushiri responded to the allegations, saying that he had not left South Africa in the past 13 months and therefore could not have met with Rachel Mukupe. He also claimed that he had not used WhatsApp or iMessage for the past 3 years and hence could not have sent her the messages Terence Mukupe claimed to have found. Bushiri also said that he had engaged his lawyers in Zimbabwe to "urgently seek legal recourse."
Mukupe's response to Bushiri was that Bushiri had not used his own phone to contact Rachel and that Mukupe had paid for the tickets for Bushiri to travel. According to reports, "Mukupe's public spat with Bushiri has divided opinion among ZANU PF members over his psychological fitness to head the ZanuPF youth league."
On 3 March Rachel (known as Rachel J) responded to the allegations between Bushiri and Mukupe. In her statement, released via her family, it was stated that:
She was not married to Terence Mukupe although the man did live in her home and she had had children with him.
She looked after him and his 10 children.
Rachel had terminated their relationship because she had discovered that Terence Mukupe had once again impregnated Tracy Winterboer, the second child sired with the same woman during Rachel's relationship with Mukupe.
The claims of her impregnation by Bushiri are unbelievable since Mukupe's evidence shows that they met in 2018. "How is it possible for her to carry a pregnancy for two years?" they asked.
On 4 March Rachel J's family demanded a paternity test be performed on the child to prove that he was not Bushiri's.
On 6 March Rachel gave birth to a daughter she referred to as "Najah, Deborah, Makomborero." No paternity tests had been conducted at that point.
Arrest
On 1 February 2019, Bushiri was arrested together with his wife by South Africa's Directorate for Priority Investigations (HAWKS) for fraud and money laundering. The Hawks said the case against the couple was linked to alleged offences of fraud and money laundering, as well as the contravention of South Africa's Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA), which had been committed from 2015. The contravention of the Act was in relation to Exchange Control Regulations relating to foreign currency of $1147200.Bushiri and his wife were each granted R100000 (approx $7500) bail after appearing in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria on 6 February 2019. Among the bail conditions were that the couple remains in Gauteng and their travel documents remain with the state. If they needed to travel, they would need to get written permission from investigating officers. Bushiri and wife were also not allowed to make contact with any of the witnesses.
On 28 August 2019 Bushiri's court case was postponed until 29 November 2019 to allow his legal team, including Terrence Baloyi and Barry Roux, to make representations to the National Prosecuting Authority. The case was subsequently postponed to 27 July 2020 for trial, at which time it was postponed to October 2020.
In November 2019 application was made by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for the forfeiture of a 1984 Gulfstream aircraft owned by Bushiri and hangared at Lanseria airport, north of Johannesburg. The NPA claimed that the aircraft had been procured with funds illegally obtained. Bushiri claimed that it was legitimately acquired in 2016 for $1250000 (R17000000). The application for forfeiture was not ready to go ahead and was removed from the court roll.
Personal Life
Shepherd Bushiri enjoys football and chess. He is married to Mary Bushiri and the two have two daughters.Source: peoplepill.com
