Mermaids appeased

A mermaid-plagued dam in Zimbabwe is up and working after traditional healers brewed beer to appease the mischievous water spirits.


The "mermaids" had harassed workers installing water pumps at a dam near the small town of Gokwe, in northern Zimbabwe, according to local media reports.

Water resources minister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo told a Senate committee last week that work on the pumps at Gokwe dam had stopped after terrified workers complained of machines breaking down under mysterious circumstances, and blamed mermaids, the state-run Herald newspaper reported.

Nkomo said the same problem had been reported at Osborne Dam, near Mutare in the country's east. He called for traditional rituals to be performed at the dams, including traditionally brewed beer, to rid them of the mermaid menace.
At Osborne dam, divers had been sent down to investigate the cause of blockages in the pumps, but returned to the water's surface vowing to never go back down, the South African Press Association reported.

"We even hired whites thinking that our boys did not want to work but they also returned saying they would not return to work there again," Nkomo told the Senate committee.

The problem at Gokwe was reportedly solved late last week when the water ministry hired traditional healers to conduct rituals. The traditional leaders held a ceremony in which they slaughtered cattle and brewed beer to appease the water spirits.

"I do not believe in mermaids, but the community that lives in the area does," Nkomo said, according to SAPA.
According to Voice of America, belief in mermaids persists among some Zimbabweans, though many are skeptical of such claims.

"Mermaids are supposedly mythological water creatures with a female body and the tail of a fish. Those tales were mostly in circulation hundreds of years ago — but stories continue to make their rounds in Zimbabwe," VOA said.

'Mermaid' Sightings in Zimbabwe Spark Debate Over Traditional Beliefs

Water Resources Minister Sam Sipepa Nkomo told a senate committee that traditional chiefs will perform rituals to exorcise mermaids believed to inhabit reservoirs where workers are now afraid to tread Violet Gonda
Washington
.....Some strange things have been happening lately in various parts of Zimbabwe.

Last month a man was hounded from a Bulawayo neighborhood over claims he possessed goblins that were raping his wife and his neighbors’ wives, and otherwise wreaking havoc in the suburban community.

This week Water Resources Minister Sam Sipepa Nkomo told a senate committee that mermaids have been hounding government workers off dam sites in Mutare, Manicaland, and Gokwe, Midlands.

The minister’s stunning revelations add to the many sensational stories that Zimbabweans have over the years passed on about supernatural manifestations in their communities.
Though many are skeptical, some do firmly believe that mermaids exist in Zimbabwe.

Nkomo told a senate oversight committee that traditional chiefs are going to perform rituals to exorcise mermaids believed to inhabit reservoirs in Gokwe and Mutare where workers are afraid to tread.

Mermaids are supposedly mythological water creatures with a female body and the tail of a fish. Those tales were mostly in circulation hundreds of years ago – but stories continue to make their rounds in Zimbabwe.

One version says mermaids carry humans underwater and if there is a public outcry their relatives might never see them again. But it is also said that victims can return as spirit mediums if their disappearance is not mourned.
Such creatures are said to be terrifying workers at the Gokwe dam in Midlands and the Osborne dam in Manicaland.

Nkomo said all the workers he sent to work on the dam sites to install water pumps had dumped the project vowing not to return to the areas because of the mythical water creatures.

Local Government, Rural and Urban Development Minister Ignatius Chombo, who also appeared before the senate committee, backed the call for traditional rites to be performed at the dams to allay workers’ fears.

Nkomo said the government is prepared to give the population the water it needs, but is unable to do so until the rituals are performed and necessary repairs can be carried out.

He said he tried to hire white personnel to do the work at Osborne dam, supposedly because they had not been exposed to the mermaids reports, but they too refused to undertake the project alleging they had seen suspicious creatures.

According to the minister, workers report that people have disappeared mysteriously while some have been chased away by the legendary creatures.

Traditional leader chief Edison Chihota of Mashonaland East said there is no dispute about the existence of mermaids.
“As a custodian of the traditional I have no doubt," chief Chihota said. "For anyone to dispute this is also disputing him or herself.”

Cultural activist Prince Peter Zwide Khumalo, a descendant of King Lobengula, said mermaids play a central role in spiritual beliefs and they are thought to mainly inhabit the largest dams, such as Lake Kariba.

“They are said to exist in water particularly in big dams like Kariba. I haven’t heard of mermaids in small dams.”

But Khumalo said it is important to weigh reality against what people believe because development can be delayed wielding traditional beliefs that cannot easily be disproved.

“I do not believe that they need to be used to hinder development. This needs to be looked into very seriously by the minister because they might go and do cultural rituals but find that people still do not continue to work,” Khumalo added.

Minister Nkomo, a Seventh Day Adventist Christian, said that while he does not believe in mermaids in this part of the world, he would not meddle in the traditional beliefs of others, including witchcraft.

Witchcraft is a controversial subject in Zimbabwe: Some see it as a source of trouble, others believe it can bring good fortune.

It is so widespread that it is recognized by the law – for instance the Bulawayo goblin man sought police assistance after he admitted that the goblins he bought from a n’anga to bring him riches were allegedly raping his wife and those of neighbors.

Cultural experts and traditionalists note economic basis of some beliefs - poverty turns many to turn to witchcraft to gain riches or to hurt enemies.

Chief Chihota said he believes political opponents were killed and thrown into the reservoirs said to be inhabited by mermaids, hence the need to appease the spirits.

The traditional leader said: “I think let’s go back to the late 70s when the struggle was being waged and I understand a number of people were thrown in those dams and nothing was done and a continuation has been happening. So we have to start from somewhere.”
But Nkomo offered another theory: He suggested that unusual water pressures in the reservoirs could be creating hazardous currents and perhaps illusions.

“In Mutare what I think is happening is that there must be a sanction underneath there which creates a hole and the water will actually be swirling violently that if you fell in you will not come out, even if you had an oxygen mask.”

Nonetheless, the minister said this is no laughing matter so traditional rites will be performed to comfort some powerful African beliefs.

Goblins’ haunt couple

Bridgette Bugalo, Own Correspondent
2012-01-24 09:57:00

The love for quick riches has backfired for a Bulawayo man who yesterday confessed to buying five “goblins” which he said were now sexually molesting his wife.

Malibeni Mhlanga of Entumbane suburb confessed to NewsDay yesterday his “goblins” were traumatising his wife, Margaret Dube.
Mhlanga said he bought the five “goblins” in Insuza — 80km north of Bulawayo — but he now remained with two as the other three were killed in an exorcising ceremony.

The man claimed he acquired the goblins to amass wealth, but all that had remained a pipedream as the traditional healer who sold him the creatures had died.

His neighbours said their wives were also being sexually abused by the gnomes at night.

Scores of residents gathered at Mhlanga’s home yesterday demanding that he be removed from the area.
“I am seeking assistance to ensure the removal or destruction of these goblins because it now affects our daily lives such that we cannot even live in our own house,” he said.

“I had five goblins, but two have remained and I cannot live in this house.
“I urinate blood every time, and it has sex with my wife every time.”

His wife confirmed the “abuse”.

“It walks like a goat, and when it has sex with me, I often feel tired and spit blood. One day my bag was mysteriously increasing in size and we called a Gokwe prophet to cleanse our homestead. It (the goblin) looked like an owl, the prophet removed two snakes, a human-creature-like goblin which when ripped apart contained a picture of our son,” she said.

“After the event, a tenant who lived here was involved in an accident. We have sought assistance from the police and we had a meeting with the councillor yesterday. This thing is a mysterious. It is a power that is in use.”

Dube said the goblin follows her to an extent where her relatives do not want to live with her.

‘Haunted’ cell fear grips police station

Saturday, 31 December 2011 20:14
Edwin Mwase

Officers at Mashava Police Station are in a quandary as suspects arrested for various crimes are refusing to be detained in one of the holding cells claiming it is haunted.

It is said suspects who spent a night in the cell raised alarm after they were terrorised by what they claimed to be “strange creatures and evil spirits”.

Authorities have since responded by installing lights in all cells at the station. Still, fears abound the strange occurrences might continue.

Acting Officer-in-Charge Assistant Inspector Washington Mashizha confirmed receiving complaints from suspects. “I can confirm we received complaints.

“We have, however, already taken steps to remedy the situation.

“A pregnant woman committed suicide in the cell in the 1990s.

“That is where the fear stems from,” he said.

Reports in Mashava say the woman’s ghost constantly visits the police station.

“Tererai Mukomondo, a gold panning suspect, who was later acquitted, claimed to have seen the apparition.

“I was the only one in the cell after being arrested on allegations of gold panning. An effigy of a ‘shiny’ woman stood right in the middle of the cell in the dead of the night,” he said.

“I thought I was dreaming. However, I realised I had seen a ghost when reality set in.”

Tinashe Kwashirai, once arrested on allegations of public violence, claims to have witnessed strange happenings. “I was once detained there with other suspects.

“When we woke up the following morning, we were all sleeping on the floor.

“The blankets were neatly folded and tucked in one corner of the cell.”

The Spook House in Harare

At last we visited the Spook House - now a pub and restaurant.

I felt nothing in the atmosphere at all!

The stories go (and thee are two of them) that a young girl child died tragically in an upstairs room and that her ghost haunts it - it is said that someone spent the night there a few years back and came out very sober the following morning.

the other story concerns a resident who had an argument with his employee - a shot was fired and the employee fell dead - are either story true - i really don't know but i want to return one evening as see if i can feel anything - ghosts don't always manifest during the brightness of day

Goblin found in Chitungwiza

FELUNA NLEYA

HARARE - Feb 18 2011 18:39

A strange-looking object, believed to be a goblin, became the centre of attraction for scores of Chitungwiza residents near Makoni Shopping Centre on Friday morning.

The goblin, which had a cone-shaped horn with what looked like human hair attached to it with red, black and white beads, was spotted by a woman who said she had gone to throw away rubbish at a nearby dump site.

According to the woman who claimed to have seen the goblin first, it was removed from a bag of mealie-meal by street kids.

“I was coming to throw rubbish away when I saw that thing (goblin) which street kids nearby said they had taken out of a 10kg mealie-meal bag as they wanted to use the mealie-meal to cook sadza,” the woman said. “That’s when I started calling people to come and see.”

A local man Rangarirai Mutomba emerged from the crowd and left people dumbfounded when he lifted the goblin and said such things were the source of suffering for a lot of people before ripping it apart and exposing its insides filled with reddish powder.

“People should not believe in these things. God is there and he is the only one who can answer your problems, no one else. I don’t know why people use these things because they do not work,” said Mutomba.

An eyewitnesses at the scene said: “It is an act of witchcraft used by many people thinking that they would be rich if they use those goblins. That’s why they keep them. But if you see it abandoned like this it would have become a problem to the owner.”

Mutomba said: “A lot of these things happen and the people never go far with them. Throwing it away like this means they couldn’t handle it anymore.”

Dead man ‘refuses’ burial

STAFF WRITER

GOKWE - Feb 04 2011 20:12

A Gokwe man who was murdered by alleged Zanu PF activists two years ago is “refusing to be buried” amid mysterious circumstances.

The body of Moses Chokuda is still in Gokwe Hospital mortuary and his father, Tawengwa Chokuda, told NewsDay that his son was “fighting his own war”.

Chokuda’s father chronicled events that led to his son’s death at the hands of alleged Zanu PF supporters whose names he claimed were Farai Machaya — whom he said was the son of the Midlands governor Jason Machaya — and Edmore Gana, son of the Zanu PF district coordinating committee chairperson for Gokwe, Isaac Gana.

He said although it was almost two years since his death, his son’s corpse still appeared fresh.

He said he wanted 15 cattle as compensation before he could bury his son.

“The way he was killed was ruthless. He was beaten to death, tied with ropes and dragged like an animal. I think he is now fighting his own war,” he said.

Chokuda said police had tried to bury his son by force after he had refused to participate in the process but they failed to move the coffin out of the mortuary.

Police spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena said the police were aware of the case but it was not their responsibility to bury people.

Chokuda said he was told by mortuary attendants at the hospital that sometimes they saw his son sitting on top of his metal coffin.

Recently, said Chokuda, his son’s corpse was said to have spoken to mortuary attendants who had brought the body of a victim of violence, advising them of the right place to put such bodies.

People in Gokwe who spoke to NewsDay last weekend corroborated Chokuda’s story saying countless efforts to have the deceased buried had failed due to various inexplicable occurrences.

They said a magistrate who had granted the accused persons bail when they first appeared in court had been affected by a mysterious mental affliction and is roaming the streets of Gokwe.

“The coffin did not move out when about 10 police officers tried to lift it out of the mortuary to bury him against my will and without my consent,” Chokuda said.

“My son is seen alive by those who are linked to his death,” he said.“I hear he (the dead man) is herding cattle belonging to one of the suspects at a farm,” said Chokuda.

Chokuda said he expected the people responsible for his son’s death to come forward and apologise with at least 15 cattle as compensation so that his son could rest.

“Don’t forget you cannot stop an avenging spirit by going to jail or through the courts. Even if you die, the rest of your family that remains behind will suffer from that avenging spirit,” he said.

The late Chokuda’s mother, Gertrude, who is blind, said she was angry and would remain burdened until the day her son “comes home to rest”.

“I am blind and it is painful to have a dead body in my house.

It’s very painful. I thought I had found an eye but ZanuPF did this to my son,” he said.