FOR those in Christendom, the teaching regarding animal sacrifices comes from
Hebrews 10:14
“For by one offering, he has perfected forever those being sanctified”. There is no
longer need to shed animal blood, let alone human blood. The death and
resurrection of His only begotten son was enough.
The story of the seven-year-old Murehwa boy, Tapiwa Makore, who was murdered
for ritual purposes is a heart-rending one. The budding flower was plucked too soon.
Gory, gruesome, heinous, callous: No list of words can sufficiently fathom the depth
of the ordeal the small innocent boy endured at the hands of the two heartless men,
one of them his uncle and namesake. His severed head has not been found to this
day. Finally, judgement has been delivered after a long three years.
Befittingly, the judge handed down the ultimate punishment to the murderers. But not
even sentencing the ghosts of the two to death would bring back Tapiwa.
However there are a lot of questions which beg urgent answers. Will the death
penalty be deterrent enough for intending perpetrators? What about the Mozambican
sangoma who concocted the ritual prescription? Justice may have been delivered in
this particular case but that may not prevent future killings.
Would-be perpetrators will strive to cover their tracks more meticulously. They will
just be more discreet. On the other end, the sangomas will always be waiting to offer
their services to the long queue of clients.
The ritual killing juju always ends in nightmares for the perpetrators. Stories are told
of grinding mills and buses which ask to be rested for a while (Voices have been
heard from engines complaining: “Chimbondizorodzai ndaneta/Lingiphumuze
sengidiniwe”).
The story of ritual killings is one that is close to home. Many years ago, while I was
still a little boy, my paternal grandfather was murdered for ritual purposes.
The old man had gone for a beer drink five kilometres from his home. He was
waylaid on his way back. He met his fate at a river, barely a hundred metres from the
homestead where the beer was being sold. After killing him and removing body
parts, they laid his corpse in the middle of the road so the bus would run over the
dead body and make it appear he was killed by the bus. Unfortunately for the
murderers, the bus driver discerned the body and braked a short distance away.
Only a few years ago, the murderer’s family had approached our family with 10 head
of cattle to appease the old man’s avenging spirit. They reported that they had lost
many members of their family under mysterious circumstances.
The perpetrator had died a pauper years ago. His business never flourished. The
nasty twists in all these stories do not speak for the efficacy of ritual killings. Sadly,
all this death penalty and apparent impotency of the juju has not discouraged would-
be perpetrators. We seem to be fighting a losing battle.
When I look back on my primary school years, two of my teachers stand out: Messrs
Chibuwe and Chimwaza. The two were rather too eager when it came to the use of
the cane. But besides that, there was a world of difference between the two
pedagogists.
The one would give you a good hiding for giving a wrong answer, but would not give
you the correct answer. The other would give you the right answer after a nice
thwack. Perhaps the learned judge could have gone a little further after pronouncing
the sentence.
He could have said what Tapiwa Makore Snr needed to do was not to kill his young
niece but to use the right fertilisers and find good markets for his cabbages.
Our people, including the elderly-are very receptive. When the concept of the
contour ridges (makandiwa) was introduced many years ago, people decried it
saying it reduced the size of their arable land. Nowadays, they appreciate that it
prevents soil erosion.
Likewise, at first the people did not understand the dangers of veld fires. Today they
are enjoying the fruits of good woodlot management: No siltation, flowing streams
and poles for construction.
Hats off to the mudhumeni (agricultural extension worker), who has tirelessly worked
with and in the rural communities. It is my reasoned submission that we need
another type of mudhumeni to preach to the aspiring businessperson the gospel of
sound business management.
Hosea 4:6 says in part: ‘My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge”. A host of
organisations should come together and drive a multi-sectoral approach to bring to
end the age-old scourge of ritual murders: Zimbabwe National Chamber of
Commerce, Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, SME Association of Zimbabwe,
Women’s Alliance of Business Associations of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Council of
Churches, Zinatha, Zimbabwe Republic Police, Government ministries and NGO’s.
Dramas exposing the myth of ritual murders should be produced and aired on
national radio and television. Roadshows and business training workshops can be
lined up for various forums: Essay writing competitions organised for schools and
colleges. In time the penny will drop that ritual killing is but an ancient fallacy.
It should no longer be solely a battle of the statutes. It should be a battle of the
mindset.
