Latest news with #CRL
TimesLIVE
19 hours ago
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
CRL chair's claims against its executive director are 'defamatory', Forsa says
Freedom of Religion South Africa (Forsa) has strongly denied what it termed false and defamatory allegations made by chairperson of the CRL Rights Commission Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva on Thursday. During a media briefing convened by the commission, Mkhwanazi-Xaluva alleged Forsa and its executive director Michael Swain had accused her, Cheryl Zondi and/or the Cheryl Zondi Foundation of receiving R1.5m from the National Lotteries Commission. Zondi was a witness in the rape trial of Nigerian televangelist Timothy Omotoso. Forsa said this donation was reported widely in the media. It said a press release from the National Lotteries Commission of December 13 2018 stated the Cheryl Zondi Foundation had partnered with the Izimvo 447 NPC and received R1.5m to aid their work for those exploited in sacred spaces. 'Neither Michael Swain, nor Forsa, has ever alleged financial misconduct of any kind. Such claims are false and wholly without any factual basis at all,' the organisation said in a statement. Forsa said it was disappointed that Mkhwanazi-Xaluva did not first seek clarity or engage with it before making public accusations and threatening legal action. 'Her subsequent laying of criminal charges against Michael Swain and Forsa is seen as vexatious and unfounded. It appears to be a personally motivated attack designed to intimidate and deter Forsa (or others) from opposing the chair's agenda to push again for state regulation of religion.' Forsa said it reserved all legal rights in its response to this matter and was considering appropriate legal remedies in response to these false and harmful allegations. 'These include a formal demand for retraction as well as amending its extant damages claim for defamation.' Forsa said it was not against any person or institution, including Mkhwanazi-Xaluva or the commission. 'On the contrary, Forsa supports all of its legitimate and constitutional objectives. However, our singular focus is the protection and advancement of religious freedom and related constitutional rights in South Africa.' Forsa said a letter from more than 20 senior religious leaders representing about 12-million South Africans was sent to President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2019, raising several concerns, including that Mkhwanazi-Xaluva simultaneously served as CRL chairperson and deputy chair of the Cheryl Zondi Foundation. The commission was a Chapter 9 institution, created to be independent and impartial, accountable only to parliament, Forsa said. 'Thus, its chair must avoid bias, preferential treatment and dual loyalties. Arguably, this includes keeping clear boundaries when interacting with organisations, especially advocacy organisations, linked to matters before the commission.' Forsa said under Mkhwanazi-Xaluva's leadership at the time, the CRL strongly pushed for state regulation of religion. 'A wide diversity of faith communities strongly opposed the CRL's proposal. The 'conflict of interest' concern arose because the CRL chair cited the Omotoso case as a high-profile example to justify the CRL's proposed regulation model (via peer review councils, licensing of religious leaders, etc).' Her appointment as the deputy chair of the Cheryl Zondi Foundation, therefore, created a strong impression of an overlap of interest and influence. 'On the one hand, the chair of the CRL is tasked with impartial interaction with faith communities, constitutional compliance, and safeguarding diverse religious rights. Acting as deputy chair of the Cheryl Zondi Foundation is an advocacy-aligned — not neutral — position.' This raised legitimate concerns about a conflict of interest on the part of the chairperson, Forsa said. 'It must be stressed that this in no way raises any concern or casts any suspicion on Cheryl Zondi or the Cheryl Zondi Foundation.' Since being reappointed, Mkhwanazi-Xaluva has continued promoting proposals for state regulation of religion, including the introduction of peer review mechanisms, Forsa said. It said it had consistently opposed this course of action, repeatedly warning that state regulation of religion was unnecessary, unconstitutional, unworkable and unaffordable. 'In Forsa's public education efforts to point out the dangers to religious freedom of state regulation of religion, we gave the historical background to the current context. One part of this extensive presentation referenced the 2019 letter to the president in good faith and with full transparency.' Forsa said the 2019 letter did not accuse Mkhwanazi-Xaluva of theft or corruption of any kind and did not contain any accusations against Zondi or the Cheryl Zondi Foundation at all.
TimesLIVE
2 days ago
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
CRL Commission chair opens case against Forsa leader for 'repeated insults'
The chair of the CRL Commission wants the courts to decide the fate of Michael Swain, leader of Freedom of Religion South Africa (Forsa), who she believes is repeatedly insulting her and the commission for its stance on the monitoring of churches. Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva addressed a media briefing on Thursday with Cheryl Zondi, a witness in the Nigerian televangelist Timothy Omotoso rape case, before she proceeded to Hillbrow police station to open a case of crimen injuria. Mkhwanazi-Xaluva alleged that NGO Forsa had been persistently using various social media platforms to spread misinformation about the work of the commission. 'This misinformation has been sustained despite us having met them to provide clarity on why the commission has resolved to undertake particular projects or programmes. 'However, the most crucial issue that necessitated this briefing today is the malicious lies that they have been spreading about me as the chair of the commission, as well as Cheryl Zondi,' she said. In April this year, the Commission for the Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission) raised concerns about the absence of effective oversight mechanisms for religious leaders in churches Mkhwanazi-Xaluva at the time questioned who was responsible for monitoring and preventing inappropriate behaviour in churches. 'There are behaviours that are unbecoming, inappropriate, unsuitable, sometimes even indecent, in churches,' she said in April. 'Who is monitoring that? Who is making sure that those things don't happen?' On Thursday, she said Forsa, an organisation of religious leaders representing more than 12-million people, had appealed to the president not to reappoint her in 2019. She said they claimed to have highlighted irregularities and bias of the CRL's investigation and the conflict and division this had created among the faith communities, which CRL had a statutory and constitutional duty to protect and defend. 'While Forsa raises a bias on the part of the commission, they go ahead to single me out. The investigation into abuses taking place in the religious sector and in different religious communities was launched by the members of the commission, not by myself as an individual,' she said. She said the commission seemed to have started a war with some of the religious leaders when they spoke about monitoring. 'We seem to have started a war with that because people don't want to be held accountable. People who say they're fighting for freedom of religion have literally declared a war on the commission, but specifically on me and then dragged in Cheryl, because they think this is easy to do. You can't just insult people in whatever way you like,' she said. She added that the commission needed to send a strong message to all the people who were trying to run away from being held accountable as religious leaders.
News24
2 days ago
- Politics
- News24
Door is open despite failed court bid, says CRL Rights Commission to KwaSizabantu witnesses
CRL Rights Commission chairperson Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said the commission was open to discussion with KwaSizabantu witnesses. Be among those who shape the future with knowledge. Uncover exclusive stories that captivate your mind and heart with our FREE 14-day subscription trial. Dive into a world of inspiration, learning, and empowerment. You can only trial once. Start your FREE trial now
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Christy Mathai, Fund Manager- Equity, Quantum AMC
Let's start with your personal story How did you land up in this job? Live Events Which funds are you currently managing? What is your investment philosophy and how would you describe your strategy? What motivates you while managing other people's money? I hail from Palakkad in Kerala, but thanks to my parents' postings in the armed forces, I ended up changing schools 6–7 times across the country. While it was challenging at the time, it gave me early exposure to diverse cultures, languages, and people—something I deeply value school, I pursued engineering. A standout experience was my internship with the Mumbai Monorail project—India's first attempt at this form of urban transport. It offered a real-world view of infrastructure planning and execution, and it was here that I first came across financial concepts like project viability and IRR (Internal Rate of Return). Post engineering, I joined TCS and worked at CRL (Computational Research Laboratories), which developed 'EKA'—the 4th fastest supercomputer in the world at the time. It was used by ISRO during the Chandrayaan mission. Working with professionals across fields on cutting-edge applications like weather modelling, drug discovery, and Formula 1 simulations was incredibly this time, I became increasingly curious about what makes companies and management teams succeed. Conversations with colleagues who actively invested in equities pushed me to explore further. I started taking finance courses and enrolled in the CFA program to build a structured strengthen this interest, I pursued an MBA in Finance from IMT Ghaziabad. My internship during the MBA introduced me to value investing through two mentors whose guidance shaped my thinking. That experience was pivotal—and it eventually led me to begin my investing career at internship experience in value investing reaffirmed my desire to pursue investing as a full-time career. Around the same time, I discovered that my father had been a long-term investor with Quantum AMC and appreciated its long-term, disciplined investment approach. I also admired Quantum's thought leaders like Ajit Dayal and I. V. Subramaniam (Subbu).As luck would have it, Quantum Advisors —the parent company of Quantum AMC—was hiring around the time I was completing my MBA. I joined the Emerging Markets (EM) team, where I covered sectors like Indian IT services, Chinese internet, and Asian semiconductors. I had the privilege of being mentored by Aureole Foong and Francisco Alzuru—industry veterans in global value investing. Working with them helped me gain a deeper understanding of how industries evolve across geographies and the importance of global time, I transitioned to tracking additional sectors, constructing portfolios, and eventually began focusing exclusively on the Indian equity market.I currently manage the Quantum Value Fund and the Quantum ELSS Tax Saver the funds follow a disciplined value investing approach—focusing on fundamentally sound companies available at a discount to their intrinsic value. While our Value Fund is a diversified, benchmark-agnostic equity fund, ELSS Tax Saver Fund combines long-term investing with tax-saving benefits under the ELSS investment philosophy is straightforward: we aim to invest in stocks of companies trading at a minimum 25% discount to their fair or intrinsic value. Often, these opportunities arise because the market is fixated on short-term disappointments, while we take a long-term perspective. However, every investment must meet our rigorous filters of corporate governance, liquidity , and estimate fair value, we focus on what we believe are the company's normalised earnings two years ahead. We have a large team covering various sectors and we spend considerable time understanding and analysing that. A visible catalyst—something that can help the stock move toward its intrinsic value—is also a stock approaches its fair value, we may consider trimming or exiting the position, unless there is a material change in its earnings trajectory. As a result, in a bull market, we may end up holding cash because many stocks hit our sell thresholds and there are new ideas to deploy. In a bear market , however, we may be fully portfolio is benchmark-agnostic and has a large-cap tilt due to our liquidity filters. It is a fairly concentrated portfolio with characteristics like valuation, growth, and dividend yield reflecting a clear value bias.A mutual fund is an excellent vehicle to help investors reach their long-term financial goals. Managing other people's money is both a privilege and a responsibility. I see it as stewardship—something that must be approached with care, discipline, and a long-term mindset.
Economic Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Christy Mathai, Fund Manager- Equity, Quantum AMC
I hail from Palakkad in Kerala, but thanks to my parents' postings in the armed forces, I ended up changing schools 6–7 times across the country. While it was challenging at the time, it gave me early exposure to diverse cultures, languages, and people—something I deeply value today. After school, I pursued engineering. A standout experience was my internship with the Mumbai Monorail project—India's first attempt at this form of urban transport. It offered a real-world view of infrastructure planning and execution, and it was here that I first came across financial concepts like project viability and IRR (Internal Rate of Return). Post engineering, I joined TCS and worked at CRL (Computational Research Laboratories), which developed 'EKA'—the 4th fastest supercomputer in the world at the time. It was used by ISRO during the Chandrayaan mission. Working with professionals across fields on cutting-edge applications like weather modelling, drug discovery, and Formula 1 simulations was incredibly formative. During this time, I became increasingly curious about what makes companies and management teams succeed. Conversations with colleagues who actively invested in equities pushed me to explore further. I started taking finance courses and enrolled in the CFA program to build a structured strengthen this interest, I pursued an MBA in Finance from IMT Ghaziabad. My internship during the MBA introduced me to value investing through two mentors whose guidance shaped my thinking. That experience was pivotal—and it eventually led me to begin my investing career at internship experience in value investing reaffirmed my desire to pursue investing as a full-time career. Around the same time, I discovered that my father had been a long-term investor with Quantum AMC and appreciated its long-term, disciplined investment approach. I also admired Quantum's thought leaders like Ajit Dayal and I. V. Subramaniam (Subbu). As luck would have it, Quantum Advisors —the parent company of Quantum AMC—was hiring around the time I was completing my MBA. I joined the Emerging Markets (EM) team, where I covered sectors like Indian IT services, Chinese internet, and Asian semiconductors. I had the privilege of being mentored by Aureole Foong and Francisco Alzuru—industry veterans in global value investing. Working with them helped me gain a deeper understanding of how industries evolve across geographies and the importance of global time, I transitioned to tracking additional sectors, constructing portfolios, and eventually began focusing exclusively on the Indian equity market.I currently manage the Quantum Value Fund and the Quantum ELSS Tax Saver the funds follow a disciplined value investing approach—focusing on fundamentally sound companies available at a discount to their intrinsic value. While our Value Fund is a diversified, benchmark-agnostic equity fund, ELSS Tax Saver Fund combines long-term investing with tax-saving benefits under the ELSS investment philosophy is straightforward: we aim to invest in stocks of companies trading at a minimum 25% discount to their fair or intrinsic value. Often, these opportunities arise because the market is fixated on short-term disappointments, while we take a long-term perspective. However, every investment must meet our rigorous filters of corporate governance, liquidity, and estimate fair value, we focus on what we believe are the company's normalised earnings two years ahead. We have a large team covering various sectors and we spend considerable time understanding and analysing that. A visible catalyst—something that can help the stock move toward its intrinsic value—is also important. Once a stock approaches its fair value, we may consider trimming or exiting the position, unless there is a material change in its earnings trajectory. As a result, in a bull market, we may end up holding cash because many stocks hit our sell thresholds and there are new ideas to deploy. In a bear market, however, we may be fully invested. The portfolio is benchmark-agnostic and has a large-cap tilt due to our liquidity filters. It is a fairly concentrated portfolio with characteristics like valuation, growth, and dividend yield reflecting a clear value bias. A mutual fund is an excellent vehicle to help investors reach their long-term financial goals. Managing other people's money is both a privilege and a responsibility. I see it as stewardship—something that must be approached with care, discipline, and a long-term mindset.
