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Cheryl Zondi, Sarah Mofokeng, Hlubikazi Faleni, Neliswa Mxakaza Makhubela, Anele Precious Mxhakaza appear before the CRL Rights Commission in Johannesburg on 17 April 2025.
The young women who testified against Nigerian televangelist Timothy Omotoso during his trial say they feel the justice system has let them down.
They were speaking at a media briefing that the CRL Rights Commission hosted in Johannesburg today.
Two weeks ago, the High Court in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape found Omotoso and his two co-accused not guilty on all 32 charges including rape, human trafficking and racketeering.
One of the women says the incident has led to personal trauma and public scrutiny.
She’s also expressed her disappointment with the way the prosecution team handled the case.
“We are disappointed, we are upset, but they are not ashamed. We know whatever the outcome was, we spoke about the truth, and we will continue standing. We can’t shy away from the fact that the system has let us down. It has failed us. The outcome of this case could have been different if our prosecution had handled the matter better than how they did. Our lives have never been the same, personally and publicly, we feel threatened worse now because our faces are out there and visible. We rest at ease knowing that we are not ashamed, and we are not defined by our experience shame and trauma.”
A statement will now be read by Penny Msibi
– We are no longer defined by what happened
-We are upset and disappointed– We spoke our truth
– The system had let us down, the prosecution did
– We feel threatened.
– We walk away with pride because we kept…
— Chriselda Zozi Lewis (Babes Wendaba) (@Chriseldalewis) April 17, 2025
