An opposition lawmaker has asked Malawi parliament to find ways in which the government must not hand over to South African authorities a religious leader wanted to answer criminal charges in that country.

Pastor Shepherd Bushiri, who heads the Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG) church and his wife, Mary are wanted by South African authorities to answer multiple charges on offences including rape and violating bail conditions.

The pair were previously resident in South Africa where in mid 2020, they were arrested but while on bail pending trial, they fled to their native Malawi.

Authorities in South Africa have requested their Malawian counterparts to extradite them but the two are challenging the extradition request in court.

The case started December 2020 but dragged on for more than four years with the court having to deal with various peripheral matters.

Last month (on March 12), the Chief Resident Magistrate’s Court in the Malawi Capital, Lilongwe found that the Bushiris have cases to answer and ordered their extradition, but allowed them a 30-day reprieve during which they can file an appeal to the High Court.

Opposition lawmaker, Victor Musowa, introduced the motion asking parliamentarians to deliberate on ways in which Malawi government can turn down the request to the Bushiri’s extradition.

The motion was supported by another legislator, Kamlepo Kalua who suggested the Bushiris needed to be protected from what he described as “clear persecution.”

“We cannot allow a foreign country to dictate who we sacrifice without due process,” Kalua said.

No decision has been made, with debate expected to continue later this week.