Self-proclaimed prophet, Shepherd Bushiri’s 8-year-old
daughter, Israella, has died.
Bushiri shared the news of his daughter’s passing at a
hospital in Kenya on his social media platforms yesterday morning. She had been
battling a lung infection in ICU for a couple of weeks.
“As a Father it was my desire to see her grow and serve the
Lord, however, the will of God was for her to return back to Him. Israella was
born during a time when my wife and I were going through great persecution and
she has lived her life witnessing what it means to fight and labour for the
Lord despite trials and battles. She came at a time when we really needed her
and through it all, she offered my wife and I, including the entire church,
great comfort and enlightenment,” Bushiri said.
“We are a church built on faith and if we aren’t careful to
observe the ways of the Lord, we can mistake God’s will for God’s punishment.
If things could be reversed, we would have desired it to be
so. However, the will of the Lord is above our desires. We have experienced it
and have accepted it.
We are a church of God’s love and strength and His love and
strength will carry us forward from this day forward,” he added.
Bushiri mentioned that he and his wife, Mary, have chosen
to not mourn Israella, but celebrate her life.
“Israella was a strong young girl who loved to worship and
serve God, despite her young age. She was brilliant in her speech and possessed
a divine excellency in the way she spoke and even tackled her studies.
“Today, all those that encountered her, testify that they
felt a certain special aura that oozed divinity. She was a walking angel. In
our darkest moments she gave us light and in our lowest moments, she lifted our
spirits. I am grateful to God to have fathered an angel of such spirit and
beauty. She will always be my little girl.”
He added that when he spoke to the doctor, it was
highlighted that if Israella had not been blocked at the airport the first time
she needed to travel to Kenya from Malawi for medical assistance, she wouldn’t
have died.
News24 previously reported that Israella was granted clearance
to travel from Malawi to Kenya to receive medical attention for a condition
that could not be treated in Malawi. “The clearance- dated 25 February 2021 and
seen by News24- came after Bushiri’s daughter was initially blocked from flying
out of Malawi,” News24 wrote.
“It is very disheartening and sad, therefore, that my
daughter has become a victim of the persecutions that we are facing from South
Africa. However, my wife and I, bow to God’s sovereignty and as this is his
will, it could have happened anyway,” Bushiri said.
Israella’s remains will arrive at the Kamuzu International
Airport in Malawi tomorrow at 14:00. A memorial service will be held at the BICC
Auditorium in Lilongwe City and she will be buried on Thursday in the Ntcheu Boma
District of Malawi.
The Bushiris are facing charges of money laundering and
fraud of more than R100 million in South Africa. Their extradition hearing is
also taking place in Malawi for fleeing South Africa late last year after being
granted bail of R200 000 each.
