It was an unusual scene that some witnesses saw at Brussels Town Hall on Monday evening. In this historic building, which once housed the political power of the municipality, Alderman for Housing, Public Heritage and Equal Opportunities, Lydia Mutyebele Ngoi (PS) participated in a religious ceremony.
In photographs sent to us and published on social networks, we can see the socialist praying among a group of acquaintances. What appears to be a blessing happened on the occasion of the “African Lyric” event, a project that honors opera singers of African origin and which took place in the Gothic Room.
This view questions the principle of state neutrality. Where is the authorized boundary between private practices in a private setting and the actions of a public figure in a public place? When asked about this, the Alderwoman assured us that this moment of reflection took place in the privacy of her office.
”I actually prayed in my office. “I got my colleagues from my father, who was a pastor.”Lydia Mutebele explains. “There is nothing condemnable in this. Like every Christian, I sometimes pray several times a day. I work 14 hours a day. From time to time I need to pray. But this is not conversion. Some people made the mistake of posting this picture on social media, even though it was an intimate moment.