Sangoma to the rescue

The sangoma who managed to locate a man who was believed dead after he had been missing for eight days, says no problem is too complex for the ancestors.

Mamaila Makondo allegedly successfully performed rituals that helped the community to find the man, community builder Lufuno Maseule (36).

The disappearance of people in Vhembe has become a common feature. In numerous cases, those who go missing are never found or, if ever found, they are bones or in a state of decay. In only a few cases are those who disappear, found alive. Communities ascribe the disappearance of people to ritual murders, which are rife in the region.

A fortnight ago, the Maseule family in Malavuwe village outside Thohoyandou and the community found themselves in the same predicament when a member of the family went missing without a trace. Lufuno Maseule, who is known for numerous efforts to develop the youth in the field of sport and who is also a reggae musician with several albums under his belt, was reported missing for eight days. The community looked everywhere in the local bushes and neighbouring villages of Tshikonelo and Shikundu.

Police with sniffer dogs and a helicopter also joined the search but in vain. After all efforts had failed, members of the community met to discuss the way forward. Several options were put forward, but the community decided to use a traditional healer.

The traditional healer, Mamaila Makondo (77) of Mphego village, gave the family some medicine with instructions to follow and, as per the instructions, the missing man was found alive in a neighbouring village. Where he had been is still a mystery as he cannot talk at the moment.

The re-appearance of Maseule has made the traditional healer a hero in the village. The village also paid her a consultation fee of R10 per household and they are still prepared to pay her handsomely for her to reveal what had led to his disappearance.

The missing man’s father, Mr Orlick Maseule, said his son had started behaving strangely before he had vanished without trace. “All we know is that he had not been feeling well for some time now and on the day of his disappearance he left the house through a window and was not wearing shoes, but socks. He went to a nearby bus stop where, holding a stone, he started shouting at the top of his voice that there were people who wanted to murder him for ritual purposes. After being restrained by the local leadership, he vanished without a trace,” said Mr Masuele.

He said they had had sleepless nights and they had even started mourning him, thinking that he would not come back alive. “The sangoma did an exceptional job. She even gave us a time frame, and what she told us happened the way she told us. Had it not been for her, we would not have succeeded,” he said.

Local civic leader Mr Thomas Makhanthisa said it took them some effort to convince the community not to cause violence. “We searched everywhere, including hospitals and mortuaries, but in vain. That was when we decided to enlist the services of a traditional healer. We are just happy that it is all over and that he was found alive,” he said.

Makondo, the traditional healer, said when the family approached her, she took time and communicated with the ancestors, who told her what to do. “I am a well-trained traditional healer who spent a long time under the waters of the Luvuvhu River, until a famous sangoma came and performed rituals before taking me back to the community. No problem is too big for me. I knew that he was going to be found alive.”

Date:13 June 2014

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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