Malawi preacher blames government for daughter's death

Flamboyant Malawian Christian preacher, Shepherd Bushiri, has announced the death of his eight-year-old daughter, Israella.

Bushiri, whose Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG) Church is followed by millions across Africa, did not say the cause of his daughter’s death but pointed out that doctors have told him her life could have been saved if Malawi authorities had not prevented her from leaving the country to seek medical treatment in Kenya.

In February, Malawi authorities prevented a private jet carrying Bushiri’s children Raphaela and Israela, cousin Esther and mother-in-law Magdalena Zgambo from leaving for Kenya at Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe.

Bushiri said the family members were travelling to Kenya to seek medical help for Israella.

The Malawi government reversed its decision within days after Bushiri's legal team went to court, but the Bushiris opted to cancel the Kenya trip altogether and continued seeking medical help in Malawi.

Announcing the death on Monday, Bushiri said he was not going to mourn his daughter, but instead called for a celebration of her life.

Prophet Bushiri runs his ECG Church in South African but controversially fled to Malawi in November after jumping bail when facing fraud and money laundering charges in that country.

https://twitter.com/psbushiri/status/1376474022884614150?s=20

Source: BBC