News / National
Bizarre 'pregnancies'
28 Jun 2014 at 08:08hrs | Views
Two women, one from Domboshava, Mashonaland East and the other from Highfield in Harare, are tied by some inexplicable twist of fate and nature.
The duo, Maidei Nemhara (40) and Portia Tapfumanei (35) have had their stomachs swollen for the past four years, making them appear like they are heavily pregnant.
The babies have not come and the condition of the two women has spawned stories of witchcraft and other conspiracy theories.
Our sister paper Kwayedza, this week, ran a story of the women and their baffling experiences.
Nemhara lives in Mutake village in Domboshava.
She is living a hellish life following the inexplicable swelling of her stomach, a condition that has left her looking like she is heavily pregnant.
Those who claim to know culture say they suspect witchcraft as the cause of the swelling. They claim that a male relative who wanted to become intimate with her could have used juju to fix her.
Nemhara, who has four children with her husband Richard Mutake Mhosva (51), said she first sensed something was wrong when she first suspected that she was pregnant.
When she visited the local clinic for prenatal care, nurses told her she was not pregnant.
"At first my stomach would swell and then subside.
"I was scared when after one year, the stomach was still big. I went to Parirenyatwa Hospital where I was told to go for a scan. I did not have the money," she said.
She said doctors who examined her said she could have had cysts or fibroids, while others said retained water was responsible. But some local people claim the swelling started after she allegedly stole pumpkins and sugarcane.
Nemhara says they have consulted faith healers who have told her the "witch's brew" used on her consisted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin roots, a frog and a small calabash.
"We are told different things wherever we go. There have been stories that some relatives bewitched me.
"The pumpkin issue came up when my sister, Violet Nemhara, consulted a faith healer alone. She was told that a certain woman and I had stolen pumpkins and sugarcane from a field.
"It is said my alleged accomplice went behind my back and apologised to the owner.
"The prophet told my sister that I should also go and apologise to the person from whom I allegedly stole. I did not steal anything from anyone," she said.
But some people insist that she was bewitched by a relative whose love advances she must have turned down.
She said: "My husband's brother (name provided) came home while I was alone and said he loved me. He said, ‘I could have come last night and spent quality time with you if I had known my brother was away'. He asked what we should do about his proposal and I turned him down. That is why people say he is the one who bewitched me."
Nemhara says she sometimes has strange dreams in which an unknown male attempts to be intimate with her.
She always refuses.
She says she experiences excruciating pain on the left side of her stomach and that she menstruates for over 10 days.
She adds the menses are painful.
"I did not steal. Would I keep quiet and go through all this pain knowing what was causing it? I could have admitted a long time ago and be cured by now if I had stolen from somebody. I suspect that brother-in-law of mine because all the traditional healers and prophets we consulted have singled him out as the culprit," she added.
Nemhara's husband, Mhosva, said he had heard the rumours that his wife stole something.
"I have heard people talk but I have no evidence, it all stems from hate within the family. It's not surprising because no one has tried to help me. I could have committed suicide if I listened to what people say about my wife's condition," he said.
He said he had never confronted his brother on the claims that he wanted to sleep with Nemhara.
For now, he says, he wants to focus on getting all the help he can so that his wife lives a normal life again.
Nemhara's daughter, Martha Mhosva, said their mother's swollen tummy was worrying them.
They require US$800 for medical help, money they do not have.
Tapfumanei's case is similar.
She says hers is a "pregnancy" that keeps bulging and is very uncomfortable.
She believes she was bewitched.
Tapfumanei said when the "pregnancy" first appeared she was excited and hoped to give birth to a baby within nine months. She has been holding on for four years now.
She also does not know whether there is a baby inside or not as the stomach keeps growing. The condition makes it difficult for her to walk properly.
"I initially thought I was pregnant since I had stopped menstruating. I went to the clinic and I was told to see specialist help," she said.
She said her former husband, Wellington Jambwa (36), left her because of her abnormal condition.
"I initially felt some movements in my stomach like a baby was inside but now it has stopped. I can only hear sounds now. My former husband and I had two children," she explained.
She says there is no pain beside the burden of the heavy stomach.
Tapfumanei also went to Parirenyatwa hospital where she was x-rayed and nothing was found inside.
She went for a scan at Machipisa but nothing was detected. She now suspects witchcraft although she does not have anyone in mind.
What hurts her is that her husband has abandoned her.
"I now stay with my grandmother Cresencia Gambiza who seems not to care about my condition," she said.
Her father, George Lameck, is married to another woman and stays in Mutare.
She added: "I was the only child and no one worries about me since my mother is late and my father has remarried."
She is a vendor and sells various items in Highfield. The money she makes is not enough to pay the US$2 000 required to meet her medical expenses.
Others simply say it's a case of runyoka. Her husband Jambwa claims Tapfuma terminated their marriage but that he still loves her.
"She refused to come back home when we went for a funeral at her aunt's house. But I still love her. I am not responsible for the runyoka," he said.
Mr Charles Chikosha, one of the people trying to help Tapfumanei, said he had also heard of the runyoka story.
Mrs Constance Guyo (47) also from Highfield, said she was committed to helping Tapfumanei.
She accompanies her to faith healers.
A traditional healer, Patrick Kapfunde, also known as Sekuru Bhaureni, attributed Tapfuma's condition to witchcraft.
"Such long term pregnancies come when women unknowingly become intimate with goblins," he said.
The duo, Maidei Nemhara (40) and Portia Tapfumanei (35) have had their stomachs swollen for the past four years, making them appear like they are heavily pregnant.
The babies have not come and the condition of the two women has spawned stories of witchcraft and other conspiracy theories.
Our sister paper Kwayedza, this week, ran a story of the women and their baffling experiences.
Nemhara lives in Mutake village in Domboshava.
She is living a hellish life following the inexplicable swelling of her stomach, a condition that has left her looking like she is heavily pregnant.
Those who claim to know culture say they suspect witchcraft as the cause of the swelling. They claim that a male relative who wanted to become intimate with her could have used juju to fix her.
Nemhara, who has four children with her husband Richard Mutake Mhosva (51), said she first sensed something was wrong when she first suspected that she was pregnant.
When she visited the local clinic for prenatal care, nurses told her she was not pregnant.
"At first my stomach would swell and then subside.
"I was scared when after one year, the stomach was still big. I went to Parirenyatwa Hospital where I was told to go for a scan. I did not have the money," she said.
She said doctors who examined her said she could have had cysts or fibroids, while others said retained water was responsible. But some local people claim the swelling started after she allegedly stole pumpkins and sugarcane.
Nemhara says they have consulted faith healers who have told her the "witch's brew" used on her consisted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin roots, a frog and a small calabash.
"We are told different things wherever we go. There have been stories that some relatives bewitched me.
"The pumpkin issue came up when my sister, Violet Nemhara, consulted a faith healer alone. She was told that a certain woman and I had stolen pumpkins and sugarcane from a field.
"It is said my alleged accomplice went behind my back and apologised to the owner.
"The prophet told my sister that I should also go and apologise to the person from whom I allegedly stole. I did not steal anything from anyone," she said.
But some people insist that she was bewitched by a relative whose love advances she must have turned down.
She said: "My husband's brother (name provided) came home while I was alone and said he loved me. He said, ‘I could have come last night and spent quality time with you if I had known my brother was away'. He asked what we should do about his proposal and I turned him down. That is why people say he is the one who bewitched me."
Nemhara says she sometimes has strange dreams in which an unknown male attempts to be intimate with her.
She always refuses.
She says she experiences excruciating pain on the left side of her stomach and that she menstruates for over 10 days.
She adds the menses are painful.
"I did not steal. Would I keep quiet and go through all this pain knowing what was causing it? I could have admitted a long time ago and be cured by now if I had stolen from somebody. I suspect that brother-in-law of mine because all the traditional healers and prophets we consulted have singled him out as the culprit," she added.
Nemhara's husband, Mhosva, said he had heard the rumours that his wife stole something.
"I have heard people talk but I have no evidence, it all stems from hate within the family. It's not surprising because no one has tried to help me. I could have committed suicide if I listened to what people say about my wife's condition," he said.
For now, he says, he wants to focus on getting all the help he can so that his wife lives a normal life again.
Nemhara's daughter, Martha Mhosva, said their mother's swollen tummy was worrying them.
They require US$800 for medical help, money they do not have.
Tapfumanei's case is similar.
She says hers is a "pregnancy" that keeps bulging and is very uncomfortable.
She believes she was bewitched.
Tapfumanei said when the "pregnancy" first appeared she was excited and hoped to give birth to a baby within nine months. She has been holding on for four years now.
She also does not know whether there is a baby inside or not as the stomach keeps growing. The condition makes it difficult for her to walk properly.
"I initially thought I was pregnant since I had stopped menstruating. I went to the clinic and I was told to see specialist help," she said.
She said her former husband, Wellington Jambwa (36), left her because of her abnormal condition.
"I initially felt some movements in my stomach like a baby was inside but now it has stopped. I can only hear sounds now. My former husband and I had two children," she explained.
She says there is no pain beside the burden of the heavy stomach.
Tapfumanei also went to Parirenyatwa hospital where she was x-rayed and nothing was found inside.
She went for a scan at Machipisa but nothing was detected. She now suspects witchcraft although she does not have anyone in mind.
What hurts her is that her husband has abandoned her.
"I now stay with my grandmother Cresencia Gambiza who seems not to care about my condition," she said.
Her father, George Lameck, is married to another woman and stays in Mutare.
She added: "I was the only child and no one worries about me since my mother is late and my father has remarried."
She is a vendor and sells various items in Highfield. The money she makes is not enough to pay the US$2 000 required to meet her medical expenses.
Others simply say it's a case of runyoka. Her husband Jambwa claims Tapfuma terminated their marriage but that he still loves her.
"She refused to come back home when we went for a funeral at her aunt's house. But I still love her. I am not responsible for the runyoka," he said.
Mr Charles Chikosha, one of the people trying to help Tapfumanei, said he had also heard of the runyoka story.
Mrs Constance Guyo (47) also from Highfield, said she was committed to helping Tapfumanei.
She accompanies her to faith healers.
A traditional healer, Patrick Kapfunde, also known as Sekuru Bhaureni, attributed Tapfuma's condition to witchcraft.
"Such long term pregnancies come when women unknowingly become intimate with goblins," he said.
Source - Translation by The Herald.
