CommunicatorIC
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Status Update: The Church of Scientology in South Africa.
The South African Independent Scientology blog Scientologists back in comm and a long and very thorough update regarding the state of the Church of Scientology in South Africa.
Storm clouds gathering – Idle Orgs Africa
https://backincomm.wordpress.com/2015/04/23/storm-clouds-gathering-idle-orgs-africa/#more-3386
While I recommend you read the entire article, an excerpt follows.
* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *
BIC has periodically updated readers on the dismal status-quo of Ideal Orgs Africa.
This continent is not unique – it’s a worldwide phenomena. Mike Rinder recently published an article on Nashville Ideal Org, which he followed up a day later with this update. Same story, different continent.
With Joburg’s grand opening in 2003 and fundraising for this project having started around 2000, South African scientologists have now been in fundraising mode for 15 years. In that time, only 2 Ideal Orgs have opened for business, both of them now bankrupt. Joburg Org was in serious financial trouble within 3 years of their grand opening and Pretoria was in the red BEFORE they opened their doors for business.
The only other “ideal building” opened in the last 15 years was the Braamfontein Test Centre in March 2010. Later on in the same year, CO CLO Ken Krieger claimed the test centre had resulted in unprecedented expansion for Joburg Org – stating “200 new Scientologists were made in 8 weeks”. In the same publication, this graphic was published:
This begs the question: Where ARE all these people? If only 10% of these claims contained an iota of truth, Scientology in Africa would be booming. That’s obviously not the case, and it thus goes without question that these stats were bald-faced lies.
The fact that the “most ethical group on the planet” continues with these fanciful fabrications for the sole purpose of continuing to ebmbezzle funds from it’s own parishioners beggars belief.
The sad truth is that by July 2011 the test centre had been closed for 4 months after its only staff member (Michelle Babich) was beaten up by a disgruntled former security guard (UPDATE: Correction – Michelle has informed BIC that it was actually an ex-staff member of the centre – see comments).
Michelle’s story can be read here (although she left out the part about the beating and how the infamous LC JBG Sandra DM De Beer took the decision to declare her for opting to route off staff after this traumatic event).
In a sporadic burst of sheer insanity, the test centre was forcibly re-opened by order of an Int Mission who arrived at Joburg Org in July 2011 to re-re-re-establish Joburg Org. Despite not having enough staff to man the main org’s Div6 properly, it’s resources were further stretched by the insistence the test centre be opened every day. And so a complement of 4 or 5 staff would trudge off to the test centre every afternoon for the mere sake of keeping up appearances.
By mid 2012 the test centre was again limping along and only being opened on some afternoons by Gavin Slender (RIP) and maybe one or two other hapless staff.
Four years on and the “new” Div6 wing of Joburg Org remains utterly under-utilised with 10 of the 11 course rooms gathering dust and having never seen a single student.
By the time we reported on the test centre in December 2013, it was once again on the verge of closing it’s doors completely.
On the 26th March 2015 at 13h45 this picture was taken of the test centre:
Doors chained up, weeds sprouting out of the pavement, the electrical box bedecked with graffiti & a lone vagabond scratching in the trash for a morsel.
The photographer reports having peered in the doors and seeing a vase of flowers that were wilted and dried out – obviously from some event long past – and not a soul to be seen since.
All of this for a mere R9 Million (not forgetting the scam pulled when R3 Million was siphoned off the test centre funds to purchase the Durban Ideal [STRIKE]building[/STRIKE] vacant lot).
* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
The South African Independent Scientology blog Scientologists back in comm and a long and very thorough update regarding the state of the Church of Scientology in South Africa.
Storm clouds gathering – Idle Orgs Africa
https://backincomm.wordpress.com/2015/04/23/storm-clouds-gathering-idle-orgs-africa/#more-3386
While I recommend you read the entire article, an excerpt follows.
* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *
BIC has periodically updated readers on the dismal status-quo of Ideal Orgs Africa.
This continent is not unique – it’s a worldwide phenomena. Mike Rinder recently published an article on Nashville Ideal Org, which he followed up a day later with this update. Same story, different continent.
With Joburg’s grand opening in 2003 and fundraising for this project having started around 2000, South African scientologists have now been in fundraising mode for 15 years. In that time, only 2 Ideal Orgs have opened for business, both of them now bankrupt. Joburg Org was in serious financial trouble within 3 years of their grand opening and Pretoria was in the red BEFORE they opened their doors for business.
The only other “ideal building” opened in the last 15 years was the Braamfontein Test Centre in March 2010. Later on in the same year, CO CLO Ken Krieger claimed the test centre had resulted in unprecedented expansion for Joburg Org – stating “200 new Scientologists were made in 8 weeks”. In the same publication, this graphic was published:
This begs the question: Where ARE all these people? If only 10% of these claims contained an iota of truth, Scientology in Africa would be booming. That’s obviously not the case, and it thus goes without question that these stats were bald-faced lies.
The fact that the “most ethical group on the planet” continues with these fanciful fabrications for the sole purpose of continuing to ebmbezzle funds from it’s own parishioners beggars belief.
The sad truth is that by July 2011 the test centre had been closed for 4 months after its only staff member (Michelle Babich) was beaten up by a disgruntled former security guard (UPDATE: Correction – Michelle has informed BIC that it was actually an ex-staff member of the centre – see comments).
Michelle’s story can be read here (although she left out the part about the beating and how the infamous LC JBG Sandra DM De Beer took the decision to declare her for opting to route off staff after this traumatic event).
In a sporadic burst of sheer insanity, the test centre was forcibly re-opened by order of an Int Mission who arrived at Joburg Org in July 2011 to re-re-re-establish Joburg Org. Despite not having enough staff to man the main org’s Div6 properly, it’s resources were further stretched by the insistence the test centre be opened every day. And so a complement of 4 or 5 staff would trudge off to the test centre every afternoon for the mere sake of keeping up appearances.
By mid 2012 the test centre was again limping along and only being opened on some afternoons by Gavin Slender (RIP) and maybe one or two other hapless staff.
Four years on and the “new” Div6 wing of Joburg Org remains utterly under-utilised with 10 of the 11 course rooms gathering dust and having never seen a single student.
By the time we reported on the test centre in December 2013, it was once again on the verge of closing it’s doors completely.
On the 26th March 2015 at 13h45 this picture was taken of the test centre:
Doors chained up, weeds sprouting out of the pavement, the electrical box bedecked with graffiti & a lone vagabond scratching in the trash for a morsel.
The photographer reports having peered in the doors and seeing a vase of flowers that were wilted and dried out – obviously from some event long past – and not a soul to be seen since.
All of this for a mere R9 Million (not forgetting the scam pulled when R3 Million was siphoned off the test centre funds to purchase the Durban Ideal [STRIKE]building[/STRIKE] vacant lot).
* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
