An attempt by a witchdoctor in Kitwe to enrich his 18-year old nephew by giving him a lucky charm commonly known as ‘palibe kanthu’ backfired when he started behaving strangely. This forced the boy’s father to take him back to his uncle to reverse the effects of the charm. Venon Mushibwe, a pastor at Miracles of All Nations Centre, last week took his brother-inlaw, Chibai Mumbi, to court to compel him to reverse the charms he gave his second-born son, John Mushibwe.

This was after Mr Mumbi, also known as “Dr Mutamba Ilunga”, refused to have a meeting with the family so that the matter could be resolved. Pastor Mushibwe obtained a summons at the Buchi Local Court, which was served on Mr Mumbi by Peter Kunda, a Community Crime Prevention Unit officer stationed at Nakadoli Market.

Upon seeing the summons, Mr Mumbi, who is the older brother of pastor Mushibwe’s wife, changed his mind and agreed to resolve the matter with the family out of court. In an interview with the Sunday Mail in Kitwe on Friday, pastor Mushibwe said he was troubled when he started noticing strange things happening to his son. He claimed that at night, his son would start bulging like a balloon, filling up space in the entire bedroom, scaring away his roommates

Pastor Mushibwe also claims his son had once turned into an owl. “Strange things started happening in my house, strong winds, my son bulging like a balloon and also turning into an owl, it was really a big owl with big eyes,” he said. Pastor Mushibwe said this prompted him to probe his son, who he said was in an uncompromising mood and refused to tell him the source of his problems.

He said his son was only compelled to tell him the truth when he also started noticing strange things happening to him. Pastor Mushibwe said his son revealed to him that it was actually his uncle, Mr Mumbi, who had given him a charm called palibe kanthu, which he asked him to put in his pocket so that he could find a job.

He said his son also had tattoos on his body and that his uncle had told him not to bath for the charm to work properly. Pastor Mushibwe said the charm, which his son had in the pocket, used to produce an oily substance, which could be seen even on the trousers. He claimed his son had started having a lot of money, but suspects that things turned sour when he was told to go and bath by his employer, who could not stand his body odour. Pastor Mushibwe said he is a man of God who believes in prayer but was disappointed with the response he got from Mr Mumbi, who was not ready to listen to him.

He, however, said the families have resolved the matter and hopefully his son can fully recover from the anguish he has been experiencing. But Mr Mumbi still insists that he gave his nephew the palibe kanthu after he approached him, seeking charms to help him find a job. “I told him to get palibe kanthu in one of the boxes and put it in his pocket, is that what can cause witchcraft?” he asked. Mr Mumbi said he is a certified witchdoctor from Mununga who is affiliated to Traditional Healers and Practioners Association of Zambia (THAPAZ) and uses prayers and traditional herbs to treat people.

He accused his nephew of harbouring hatred against him after he advised him against marrying an older woman who has seven children. Mr Mumbi said he has been healing people since he was in Grade Four and disassociated himself from witchcraft claims. He, however, said he is ready to resolve the matter with pastor Mushibwe