A controversial African bishop and author is crying foul after he was refused a visa to enter Jamaica.

Bishop Joshua Maponga said he was invited to speak at the Fi Wi Sinting festival held at Somerset Falls in Portland on Sunday, August 11, but his application for a visa was turned down. He was told that he could appeal the decision within 10 days of being informed or wait for 12 months before submitting a new application.

“I am greatly disappointed,” Maponga told the Jamaica Observer on Monday from his home in Zimbabwe.

“I don’t understand what the hullabaloo is all about and why they are acting in such a horrible way. I was not there to fight anybody. I was coming there for a festival,” he said.

“We planned this event some six months ago. The director wrote me a letter inviting me to Jamaica, which I submitted in ample time. My passport had three to four pages in it so I left my application there and applied for a new passport altogether which I came back and submitted into the system. They sat on the application until the event expired and only gave me the response as of now,” he said, explaining that he received the advisory from the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) on Monday this week.

“As an African I am disappointed. I was just there a few months ago and I don’t know why they would act in such a weird way. I don’t know if the Americans are controlling it or the British are controlling it, but something is not adding up here,” he charged.

When the Observer contacted PICA for a response, Acting CEO Garth Williams explained that the agency is not permitted to release the personal information of applicants.

“Please note that PICA is obligated under the Data Protection Act to protect the information privacy rights of individuals. As a general rule, visa applicants must satisfy all the immigration entry requirements laid down in law for the admission to, and leave to remain in the island,” Williams said in an e-mailed response.

The organisers of the Fi Wi Sinting Festival were reluctant to comment on the matter on Monday, however, sources shared that they were upset that the development made Maponga miss the event which he had advertised that he would attend.

Maponga is also well-known as a motivational speaker, philosopher, leader, musician, and social entrepreneur. He was a pastor for 33 years and was conferred the title of bishop from the Pentecostal and Evangelical community.

He worked with organisations such as Entrepreneurial Development Southern Africa, the Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA), and Global Management Centre (UK). His biography states that in 2020 he was suspended by the SDA over concerns about the content of the gospel he was preaching and the manner in which he communicated it.

After spending more than 20 years in South Africa, Maponga relocated to Zimbabwe, saying he had bowed to pressure to leave the country.

“I lived in Britain for three to five years. I go to the United States, I go to Dubai and I don’t have a problem anywhere in the world,” he told the Observer on Monday. “It is the first time I am refused a visa to enter a country.”

Maponga said it was unfortunate that his visa application was denied at a time when there is a lot of talk about Jamaica and Africa establishing stronger ties.

“Bob Marley was here for our independence and we have great respect for Jamaica and the Rastafari movement, and to have a slap in my face by an immigration officer was a low punch. I am very disappointed. It is disgusting, to say the least,” he said.