Cape Town mayor reveals mosque as new buyer of the Good Hope Centre after failed church bid

The future of the Good Hope Centre

Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis let the cat out of the bag following months of speculation behind the sale of the iconic Good Hope Centre, when he revealed during a live radio interview that the first bidder, a Nigerian church, could not foot the bill of R135 million, while a second bidder, a mosque, was the new buyer.

Pastor John Anosike of the Spirit Revelation Ecclesia announced to his congregation in March that the church had bought the Good Hope Centre following a City property auction.

But during an interview with Radio 786, Hill-Lewis disclosed that the new buyer of the Good Hope Centre was, in fact, a mosque, when asked whether the Nigerian church was really taking over it.

“No, it's not actually, I can’t really say much,” said Hill-Lewis.