St Engenas ZCC, which revealed that it has been in and out of court concerning the alleged imposter church, is facing a daunting task with the Societies Act in its attempt to register. "The church was registered in Botswana on September 17, 1974, and issued with the certificate of registration. Today, the church is faced with rather inimitable and daunting administrative challenges that comprise its recent efforts to regularise as per Societies Act No.6 of 2022," stated the church. In a letter addressed to the media signed by the church's executive committee chair, David Matsetse and the secretary, Kutlo Nare, they explained that the administration intends to reach out to its members and the general public, both locally and abroad, to inform them of its current situation. The move is reportedly intended to protect members of the public from falling victim to the alleged illegal church.
"We believe (that) engaging the media will protect the unsuspecting general public who might want to take membership and or enter into an agreement with the church at any given time," wrote the church executive. St Engenas is a breakaway church formed after the death of ZCC founder, Bishop Engenas Barnabas Lekganyane, in 1948. The ZCC split into two churches and in Botswana St Engenas has been reportedly experiencing internal conflicts. The reported conflicts within the church have allegedly resulted in two factions, each seeking to operate independently and register separately, despite being part of the same organisation. Therefore, both factions are said to be currently operating illegally under Botswana laws. A few months ago, a letter from the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs, dated May 15, 2024 and addressed to Matsetse stated that the two groups were both recognised by the Moria Head Office. "This means each of these two groups is recognised by the Moria Head Office as per documentation. " The prevailing scenario, where each group identifies itself as the rightful entity to be issued a registration certificate, makes it difficult for the ministry to proceed, even before compliance issues are considered," explained the letter. The ministry had at the time advised both groups to consider merging and registering as a single entity.
