Fake 'tsikamutanda' gets a thorough beating

A wanderer who has been pretending to be a tsikamutanda for more than a year, fleecing Kezi villagers in Matabeleland South of their hard earned cash and livestock, last week received thorough beating after it was discovered he was an imposter.

Known as Prophet Chinyama, the man reportedly came from Harare early last year and has been pretending ability to extract and destroy goblins, as well as performing healing acts on villagers in Kezi and its environs until his luck ran out at one Jabu Ncube's home after he claimed he could cure a child of an undisclosed ailment.

Under the watchful eye of brothers Jabu and Khululiwe Ncube, Chinyama was led to a room where the bed-ridden child was sleeping.

"He got into a trance and said a spirit had told him that there was a bad omen in the home caused by a dead relative who was  buried in a grave  behind the kraal," said a neighbour, Chris Nyathi, from Mtotobi Village where the incident occured.

It is alleged that before the healing and cleansing act, Chinyama had charged $300 and a goat for his services and was given a goat, with the balance to be paid after the cleansing act.

"He led the brothers to the grave and along the way, one of the brothers noticed that the tsikamutanda had something concealed under his armpit and he tipped his elder brother.

"When they got to the grave, he started performing his acts and again got into a trance, jumping all over the grave and said the spirit had shown him that there was something evil buried by the side of the grave.

"As he dug, he dropped the unidentified object into the pit he had dug, claiming aftewrwards that he had found the object responsible for the family's bad omen and sicknesses," said Nyathi.

Chinyama was then led back to the homestead for payment after ‘successfully' extracting the object, ignorant of what would befall him.

"They got to a room where Chinyama was to receive his balance payment upon which Jabu said he was  going to collect the money from his bedroom. He came back with a sjambok and the two assaulted Chinyama who admitted to lying that he was a prophet.

"He received a thorough beating and had to apologise, admitting that it was his way of making ends meet," he said.

Chief Nyangazonke Ndiweni, under whose jurisdiction the Mtotobi Village falls, confirmed receiving a report of the bogus prophet and said the ‘healer' had since returned the goat and disappeared from the village.