Self-styled prophet, Shepherd Bushiri has reacted to a report of his alleged affair with a young congregant.
A publication, City Press claims that Bushiri’s alleged mistress is 25-year-old Phumzile Paledi, a woman from Limpopo who is a presenter on his Prophetic Channel TV. They claim that Bushiri has cosied up to the former club hostess and that their relationship is far from platonic.
Taking to his offiial Social media accounts, Prophet Bushiri accuses the media of trying to bring him down, adding that the photo of him and the young woman was edited from a group picture.
“See what media can do just to bring a man of God down. They are busy sharing on their pages those who hate us and it’s a high time we expose them by sharing this act of darkness in all our social media platforms. In 2019 we will not sit down and watch the enemy fight.
SHARE SHARE SHARE SHARE!” he wrote.
On her part, Paledi strongly denies that there is anything untoward going on between her and the Malawian pastor.
“Bushiri is my spiritual father; there is nothing more than that,” she said.
Meanwhile, Bushiri’s lawyer, Terrance Baloyi, also slammed the rumours, saying the “prophet” had previously been accused of rape and money laundering, and suspicions about his relationship with Paledi were simply part of a smear campaign.
He added that Bushiri was always with Mary, his wife of seven years.
“Last year was a tough year for him. It wasn’t easy for him. People may hate you for your success,” said Baloyi.
Asked about pictures taken by the pair, Baloyi said: “If you are working closely with the prophet, you will be fortunate to take pictures with him.”
However, many are questioning who is financing Paledi’s lifestyle.
“I work as a TV presenter and I get paid like everyone else, so it is unfair for people to question my lifestyle,” she fumed.
A well-placed source told City Press that Paledi travels with the pastor from his Enlightened Christian Gathering church and the congregation believes that they are more than just friends.
“I travelled with him a lot last year because it was a year of winning souls and because I am a presenter at church,” she said in response.
Paledi, who met Bushiri at the church when she was 19 years old, said people were jealous of her luxurious lifestyle and she was tired of the rumours.
“People must just leave me alone. Every year I am accused of dating a pastor, maybe it’s about time I set the record straight so they will leave me alone,” she said.
