- The High Court in Mahikeng dismissed an application by Enlightened Christian Gathering South Africa NPC and ECG TNJC Rustenburg NPC.
- Acting Judge BF Mnyovu found that the applicants failed to prove ownership of the Rustenburg church property registered in PSBM’s name.
- The property remains part of the liquidation estate of Provincial Support Business Management NPC, formerly Prophet Shepherd Bushiri Ministries NPC.
The High Court in Mahikeng has dismissed an attempt by Enlightened Christian Gathering South Africa NPC and ECG TNJC Rustenburg NPC to be declared the true owners of a Rustenburg church property registered in the name of a company linked to Malawian fugitive and self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri.
Acting Judge BF Mnyovu delivered judgment on 7 August 2026 in the dispute between the two ECG entities and the joint liquidators GDS Ramajho NO, S Suleman NO and FH Suleman NO. The Registrar of Deeds, Pretoria, and the Master of the High Court, Pretoria, were also cited as respondents.
The court dismissed the application and ordered the applicants to pay the respondents’ costs.
Property at the centre of the dispute
The dispute concerned a property at Farm 200, Waterkloof, Rustenburg, currently registered in the name of Provincial Support Business Management NPC (in liquidation), previously known as Prophet Shepherd Bushiri Ministries NPC (PSBM).
The applicants asked the court to declare that ECG TNJC Rustenburg was the “real owner” of the property and to direct the Registrar of Deeds to transfer it into the second applicant’s name.
According to the applicants, church member Maria Mokoena purchased the property in 2018 for the benefit of the Rustenburg branch, while PSBM merely held the title until the branch could be formally registered as a non-profit company.
They relied on what they described as an oral nominee arrangement involving church leadership structures, DEM committees and resident pastors.
Bushiri fled South Africa while on bail
The judgment records that Bushiri and his wife, Mary Bushiri, were arrested in South Africa on charges including fraud, rape and money laundering allegations. They were released on bail and later fled South Africa for Malawi.
Judge Mnyovu noted that, following the controversy surrounding the ministry, the entity’s name was changed from Prophet Shepherd Bushiri Ministries NPC to Provincial Support Business Management NPC, although the Rustenburg property remained registered in that entity’s name.
The judge said the liquidators were appointed to wind up the estate and deal with its assets, including the disputed property.
Applicants said the branch was the beneficial owner
The applicants argued that Mokoena had purchased the property on behalf of the Rustenburg branch and that PSBM would hold only nudum dominium until the branch was registered as an NPC.
They told the court that congregants had raised funds, made pledges and spent substantial amounts improving the property over several years because they believed it belonged to the Rustenburg branch.
The applicants further argued that PSBM had never challenged the branch’s use of the property and that the relief sought was essentially vindicatory rather than contractual.
Liquidators said there was no proof
The joint liquidators disputed that version and argued that the applicants had produced no written agreement showing that the property was bought on behalf of the Rustenburg branch.
They pointed to conveyancing records indicating that the property was transferred directly from the sellers, RJ and EA Botha, to PSBM in April 2018 and that the purchase price was paid through PSBM.
The respondents argued that the applicants were attempting to establish a personal or contractual claim rather than a real right capable of defeating the registered title.
Court examined the nominee argument
Judge Mnyovu accepted that South African law recognises oral nominee agreements in certain circumstances and discussed the principle established in Dadabhay v Dadabhay.
The judge said such agreements can be valid where they do not involve the direct transfer or alienation of land. However, he found that the facts of this case did not support the relief sought. He wrote, “The conveyancers directly transferred the immovable property from Botha to PSBM.”
In the judge’s view, that indicated that PSBM itself purchased and took transfer of the property. The court also noted that the applicants failed to explain in their founding papers how the property had been acquired for ECG TNJC Rustenburg.
Redacted bank statements rejected
In a significant finding, the court rejected bank statements produced in the replying affidavit. Judge Mnyovu said the statements were redacted and did not establish ownership in favour of the second applicant.
He stated, “These redacted statements are regrettably rejected by this court as they do not hold any water to my ruling.” The judge added that they “do not prove any beneficial ownership by the second applicant.”
No real or vindicatory right proved
The court found that once the property was transferred into PSBM’s name in 2018, the applicants did not acquire a real right capable of supporting a vindicatory claim.
Judge Mnyovu concluded, “The second applicant does not have any vindicative rights over the immovable property Provincial Support Business Management NPC (in liquidation).”
He further held that the joint liquidators were not unlawfully in possession of the property because they were acting under a liquidation order granted by the High Court in Johannesburg on 6 February 2024.
Judge questioned the timing of the new NPC
The judgment also deals with the timing of the second applicant’s registration. The court noted that ECG TNJC Rustenburg was registered as an NPC only in July 2024, years after the property had already been transferred to PSBM.
Judge Mnyovu was critical of the attempt to claim ownership at that stage and found that the registration did not create rights in property already registered in PSBM’s name.
Property remains in liquidation estate
The court said the appropriate course for the applicants, once they became aware of the liquidation, would have been to participate in the liquidation process rather than seek a declaratory order transferring ownership.
Judge Mnyovu held that it is for the joint liquidators to deal with the property as part of the winding-up of Provincial Support Business Management NPC.
For now, the Rustenburg church property remains in the liquidation estate, and the ECG entities leave court without the ownership declaration they sought.
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