The surreal trial of pastor Timothy Omotoso – facing a slew of serious charges – has left a watching public bewildered at the cult-like following he commands, his seemingly mocking approach to the justice system, and the gravity of the allegations.
From delusions of grandeur to presenting himself to his followers as an all mighty power with a direct link to God, Omotoso has a strong following because of his charisma and ability to manipulate, experts said this week.
On Monday, when Omotoso’s long-awaited trial – in which he and his two co-accused, Lusanda Sulani, 36, and Zukiswa Sitho, 28, face a total of 97 charges, including human trafficking, sexual assault and rape – started, the tone was set.
From the onset the ostentatious leader of the Jesus Dominion International church put on a show.
From outlandish outfits to sniggering in the dock while a witness delivered harrowing testimony, and even a drum majorette parade in front of the Port Elizabeth High Court, Omotoso seemed unfazed by the court proceedings.
Some experts suggested that by trivialising the seriousness of the case, Omotoso was able to maintain control over his followers.
Clinical psychologist and former brigadier in the police investigative psychology section, Dr Gérard Labuschagne, said the theatrics were likely aimed more at his supporters, keeping their support for him going.
“Could this be seen as him trivialising the situation and presenting such to his followers? And possibly himself?” Labuschagne said.
“I would imagine he can’t look vulnerable in front of his followers – he needs to keep their support, even if convicted.
“So trivialising the situation can be aimed at retaining their support – keeping up the pretence of his innocence, playing up to them.
“If you can make this an anti-church conspiracy it makes it easier for his supporters to stick with him.
“Just look at any large church and you will probably find a degree of idolisation of the leader.
“We see it in politics (see Trump), we saw it with Hitler, and other historical figures who had huge followings and who ended up doing weird things.
“These people tend to be very charismatic, and often the people drawn to them have their own emotional vulnerabilities.”
A Port Elizabeth-based clinical psychologist, who agreed to comment about the case on condition of anonymity because she feared retribution by Omotoso’s followers, said his demeanour in court presented as someonewith a narcissistic and psychopathic personality disorder.
“These kinds of people also have a lack of empathy, exaggerated sense of self-importance, feeling of entitlement, a need for excessive praise and attention.
“People with this condition are frequently described as arrogant, self-centred, manipulative and demanding.
“A core trait of these people is a total lack of insight or sensitivity, and yes, he is therefore trivialising the situation.
“He cannot let go of his guard of superiority and his actions are therefore ways of suppressing any form of anxiety he may have regarding the court proceedings. His giggles show this,” the psychologist said.
The unflinching support Omotoso commands from his supporters was evident this week when, on each occasion he was led from and to the holding cells at the court, supporters in the public gallery called out “Daddy, we love you”, with men and women blowing kisses to their leader.
“His following would probably nurture any narcissistic features, becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy, so to speak,” Labuschagne said.
“You would probably find that people drawn to him so intensely already had their own emotional vulnerabilities.
“Underlying vulnerabilities [make them easily] manipulated by his charisma.
“Religion is already used to control the minds and behaviours of millions.
“This is no different except that his seems to be more about himself and his abuse of power,” Labuschagne said.
On Wednesday, the court heard from the state’s first witness, Cheryl Zondi, 22, who alleged that Omotoso would manipulate congregants to believe that those who did not believe him or follow his instructions would die or go insane.
“I remember on one occasion there was a man who died and [Omotoso] explained to us that it was because he disobeyed his instructions.
“The whole church feared him [Omotoso].
“Every time someone died he [Omotoso] would flaunt this,” Zondi told the court.
Zondi was only 14 when she joined the church in 2010.
She testified that she was allegedly systematically sexually groomed by Omotoso to perform lewd sex acts on him.
Leading pastor of the Good News Community Church in Port Elizabeth, Afrika Mhlope, said he was perturbed by the shenanigans displayed in court and more so by the demeanour of Omotoso while in the dock.
“The demeanour of this man, his clothing, his giggling and clutching of the Bible are very unusual – it doesn’t only speak of a problem in Christianity and of people who are idolised but I think it also speaks of a psychological problem,” Mhlope said.
He said he and other local pastors had felt something was amiss with Omotoso and his ministry long before his dramatic April 2017 arrest at the Port Elizabeth airport.
“The signs had been there and some pastors like myself had spoken out about those things, at least in our own congregations. We warned people but the strange thing is his ministry continued to grow even though there were clear signs there was something amiss.”
Attributing this to a situation where individuals are able to wield power over vulnerable groups with the misuse of religious teachings, Mhlope said this could lead to very dangerous situations in any society.
“The reason for that, I think, is the power situation we have in Christianity that causes people to gravitate toward people who seem to have supernatural power, or seem to have answers to all social problems.
“We try to teach people to always find themselves a relationship with God that is not defined by who their pastor or prophet is.
“I think [Omotoso] is aware of the power he has over people – I don’t know how people came to give him that power.
“It is difficult to understand why people behave that way.
“It’s a weakness in modernday Christianity.
“Unfortunately I do not believe Omotoso is the first and I don’t believe he is the last.”