The ManicaPost
Tendai Gukutikwa
Weekender Reporter
TWO Mutasa siblings stand accused of tampering with their uncle’s grave with the intention of invoking his spirit to kill his widow through vengeance.
Phillimon and Gochai Nyamunokora believe that their aunt, Gogo Mwauyaneyi Nyamunokora (76), bewitched and killed her husband, Sekuru Misheck Nyamunokora.
The Nyamunokora brothers said they placed a knife and red chillies on their uncle’s grave as part of a ritual to avenge his death.
They also revealed that they contracted a Honde Valley traditional healer only identified as Mai Mapingo to assist them in killing Gogo Nyamunokora.
The siblings claimed that Sekuru Nyamunokora and his two siblings were killed by Gogo Nyamunokora through witchcraft.
However, Phillimon and Gochai were left with egg on the face after Gogo Nyamunokora was exonerated by Chief Mutasa’s court.
Gogo Nyamunokora, who had been tormented by the duo over the allegations over the last three years, said she was relieved by the verdict as she is innocent. She, however, said it will take some time for her to forget about her ordeal as the allegations have affected her.
“They planted rapoko and put a knife and chillies on my husband’s grave so that he would seek vengeance on me, but I did not kill him. I am still in pain because of these allegations. I do not know if I will ever get better emotionally,” she said.
The elderly woman said the community is now shunning her as she has been labelled a witch.
“I doubt if I will ever recover from this torture. While I am trying by all means to forgive them, my mind is yet to find peace because of the shame I suffered. I wonder why they fingered me as the person who killed my own husband. The two accused me of using supernatural powers to cause misfortune and death in the family.
“The court found no evidence to support their claims and ordered all of us to co-exist peacefully. However, I feel these two have something up their sleeves as they no longer greet me.
“When the matter was brought before the community court, Chief Mutasa ordered us to consult three traditional healers. I was exonerated by the traditional healers, but Phillimon and Gochai insisted that I was guilty.
“We were ordered to consult more healers in Chimanimani, Chipinge and Rusape and I was still found innocent,” said Gogo Nyamunokora.
When the Nyamunokora brothers allegedly seek the services of a sangoma to kill Gogo Nyamunokora through spiritual means, the elderly woman’s other family members reported the matter to Chief Mutasa’s court. During the court appearance, the brothers insisted that Gogo Nyamunokora was a witch who was causing the death of family members.
“When we consulted traditional healers, we were told that the knife was planted by Phillimon and Gochai as instructed by their n’anga,” said one of Gogo Nyamunokora’s grandsons, Trevor.
“Their intention was to invoke our late grandfather’s spirit to kill our grandmother through vengeance. We gathered that they were instructed by their n’anga to buy a knife, red chillies and other stuff which they used in performing some rituals on the grave at night.
“We were shocked to discover the knife during the tombstone unveiling ceremony. The two did not come for the ceremony,” said Trevor.
The court also heard that following the death of Sekuru Nyamunokora, the family noticed some rapoko that was growing on his grave.
“A year after our grandfather was buried, we saw some rapoko growing on his grave and that is when the witchcraft claims began. A faction of the family accused our grandmother of killing her husband. They later confessed that they planted the rapoko on his grave, probably as a way of getting back to the ‘witch’. However, two years have gone by and our granny is still alive,” he said.
