Shake Duffy and you’re going to shake entire Catholic Church - Fr Msipu

Shake Duffy and you’re going to shake entire Catholic Church - Fr Msipu
By Christopher Miti in Chipata
Mon 27 Sep. 2010, 10:00 CAT

SHAKE Bishop Paul Duffy and you are going to shake the entire Catholic Church, Catholic Diocese of Chipata Vicar-General Fr Gabriel Msipu has warned. And Fr Msipu said the people who are accusing the Catholic Church of supporting PF are just scared.

Delivering his sermon during Mass at St Anne’s Cathedral yesterday, Fr Msipu said the church could not isolate Mongu Diocese Bishop Duffy. He said the church would not stop speaking on behalf of the voiceless.

“When we speak they start intimidating us. We stand by Bishop Duffy, we can’t isolate Bishop Duffy. Bishop Lungu had explained about Bishop Duffy but he was misquoted. We stand by Bishop Duffy, when he spoke he was intimidated.

We don’t want the MMD Copperbelt youth information and publicity secretary Chiko Chibales,” Fr Msipu said. “If they shake Bishop Duffy they are shaking the whole Catholic Church. We are going to continue speaking for the people. Who has been to Nyalugwe? Who has been to Chasera? Who has been to Chifunda? Who has been to Kapiri Kasweta? And do you know how people are living? And I don’t know if any of the government leaders have been to these places.

“So we speak about realities of what is happening in the society. When we do that people start targeting us like Chiko… my dear shake one bishop, you are shaking the whole church.”
Fr Msipu said the church would continue to speak for the less fortunate and the voiceless in society.

“This responsibility lies in the church leaders, in traditional leaders, government leaders and in you all. We must propagate the truth. We must speak on behalf of our society. We know the truth and we must speak it in the society. And indeed as a church we have tried to be prophetic in our mission because we are there to supplement government,” Fr Msipu said.

He said the church supplements the government in the area of education, health and other social services the people deserved.
“We sometimes dialogue with government leaders on behalf of the people. We do it as ZEC Zambia Episcopal Conference, some church leaders have done this at an individual level.

Even President Rupiah Banda came to see Bishop Lungu and he was told some of the issues affecting the people of this diocese,” he said. “And when we do that as a church it doesn’t mean that we are taking sides with political parties. Some people are accusing us that we are supporting PF.

But that is not true,they are just scared.”
Fr Msipu said various accusations had been made about the Catholic Church whenever the clergymen speak but it was clear that certain people just wanted to perpetuate the status quo to maintain their positions.

He also said there was a lot of injustice on the census recruitment because a lot of unemployed people were left out.
He blamed the government for delaying the farmers’ payments for the maize they supplied to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA).

“Let’s talk about FRA. People have not been paid their money up to now. I am told money is in the bank but people have not been paid and they depend on that money. These people want to take their children to school.

The farmers have up to now not been paid their money but they have been promised several times. Is that what you call justice? My dear brothers and sisters, if you think that is justice then you don’t deserve to be in this building,” he said.
Fr Msipu said it was unfortunate that priests were called names for highlighting the plight of the poor in society.

“In chief Pembamoyo’s area Vubwi area in Chadiza there is a problem of water and people are forced to drink water with monkeys but when I speak about it they say ‘no abambo Msipu alobelela mzandale’ Fr Msipu has become political. Issues of water, you call that politics?” asked Fr Msipu.

Fr Msipu’s remarks on Bishop Duffy come in the wake of threats from Chibale that he, with his crack squad on the Copperbelt, would march to Mongu and deal with the Bishop because of his recent statement on change of government.
Bishop Duffy had said that the people he interacted with in Western Province felt that now was the time for change.

Chibale’s remarks have also been justified by MMD youth chairman Evans Chibanda. Chibanda, last week, said all political parties in the country had militant groups and men of God should criticise the government objectively.