Online Reporter
Raymond Jaravaza, [email protected]
DESPITE a two-year onslaught of disturbing and escalating threats from an embittered ex-girlfriend, delivered via numerous local and foreign phone numbers, married journalist Methuseli Moyo maintained a composed silence.
The threats stemmed from his decision to end the relationship with the now bitter ex (name withheld) and marry his sweetheart, Natasha Mhlanga. The couple married in a traditional ceremony last September to cement their union.
From the fringes of a breakup that the ex-girlfriend did not accept, according to Moyo, his family has endured a torrid time for the last couple of months with unexplained fires that threaten to tear apart a home grounded on the foundations of love and prayer. So severe are the fires that a recent unexplained inferno destroyed US$20 000 from the sale of a Rangemore suburb home that Moyo, a National University of Science and Technology (Nust) lecturer, intended to use to finish the construction of another family home in Pumula North.
While the existence of the dark world and witchcraft are subjects of intense debate in society, Moyo’s harrowing ordeal from what he believes to be the work of black magic is a stark reminder of the lengths some people take to seek revenge. He shared his story with Saturday Chronicle from his home in Magwegwe West suburb on Thursday, the same home whose peace and tranquillity have been shattered by unexplained fires.
“I have been receiving a lot of abusive messages for the last two years and I had no doubt in my mind that the messages were coming from my ex-girlfriend. Although she was using anonymous numbers, I could tell from the content, diction, tone, demeanour, and even the spelling errors that she typically made when we were still together that she was the source of the messages,” said Moyo.
To avoid an online tiff with the ex-girlfriend, Moyo simply blocked the several numbers she used to launch the barrage of insults and threats on him and his family.
“Initially, she used her own phone number, which I blocked, and then she turned to South African registered mobile numbers, but the tone and content of the messages were still the same, so I blocked those numbers as well.”
When the relationship with his then fiancée, Mhlanga, got serious, the intensity and tone of the messages escalated.
“She changed tact and started sending the threatening messages to my wife, who was still my fiancée at that time, but we had both resolved to block the mobile numbers and not entertain her.”
Having realised that the couple was ignoring her, Moyo says the bitter ex turned to his son, sending him even more menacing and threatening messages.
“The most hurtful message sent to my son was ‘you, your father, and his new wife will be burnt alive in your home’, and it was sent sometime early this year, I think around January 5. At one point, she sent another anonymous letter stating that no woman, including my wife, will ever stay in our house, as the situation will become unbearable.”
That was the last straw, and Moyo opened a case of harassment at the Magwegwe Police Station against the woman. She was called to the police and cautioned. It appears the decision to report the bitter ex triggered explosive emotions. Then the fires started late last year.
“The first fire started in the bedroom, and we assumed it was an electrical fault. The second fire was in a spare room, and we removed everything to ensure nothing flammable had ignited the fire. Then the fires moved to the sitting room and other rooms,” he said.
The Nust lecturer showed the news crew one sofa that he said had been burnt several times as the sporadic blazes intensified.
Then the fires started “attacking” him.
“I was sleeping one February night when I felt intense heat on my upper body and screamed to my wife that I was on fire. She could not see the fire but nevertheless poured water on my body and realised that I had blisters on my back. The next day, late in the afternoon, I was with my wife and 20-year-old son and felt the intense heat all over my body again, and my son poured water all over me. I was taken to Galen House (a private hospital in Bulawayo city centre) where I received treatment for burns. The whole experience was just traumatic and painful,” he said.
Determined to find a solution to the mysterious fires, the family sought the assistance of a prophet who came to the home, but before he could do anything, three fires broke out in the house.
“He did what he came to do and assured us that it was the end of the ordeal, and for four weeks we lived in peace.”
In the midst of the temporary tranquillity that the family enjoyed for one month, tragedy struck when the family least expected it. $20 000 was destroyed in a fire that started in a wardrobe in the main bedroom. He had just collected the money on a Sunday to buy building material the following day when yet another fire engulfed the main bedroom while he was outside with his mechanic.
“Because we had not been terrorised by the fires for four weeks, we felt safe to keep the money in the house just for a day before using it on Monday,” he said.
He had a nagging feeling at the back of his mind to place the money in a plastic bag and put it in a container with water, but before he could do that, he attended to the mechanic.
“Suddenly, smoke was billowing from inside the main bedroom. For about 30 seconds, I couldn’t see anything because of the thick smoke. I opened the windows and realised that the fire was coming from the wardrobe where we kept the money.”
Every bill of the $20 000 was reduced to ashes. The family is seeking assistance to find a permanent solution to the bizarre fires. Harare-based Gogo Chihoro offered to assist Moyo when she makes her weekly trips to Bulawayo at the Woodville suburb park, where she assists people with various life challenges.
“I read the story in the Chronicle during the week and I’m ready to assist the family. Every problem has a solution, and seeking assistance is the right thing for the family to do,” she said.
Moyo said he was desperate to save his family from the black magic cast by his adversaries and would take any assistance as long as it would not cost him financially, as the family lost its savings in the latest fire.
