Online Reporter
Lovemore Kadzura
Weekender Reporter
THE Seventh Day Adventist week-long church conference at Chinyudze began on a devastating note after a 28-year-old congregant, Tafadzwa Macheche, allegedly committed suicide on the premises.
Her body was discovered by fellow worshippers hanging from a tree near the ablution facilities, leaving the church community stunned and searching for answers.
Farirai Mutambirwa, a church member and acquaintance of Macheche, said the deceased had a history of suicidal tendencies dating back to last year.
Macheche had reportedly confided in church members about being haunted by spiritual voices instructing her to take her own life.
Mutambirwa said during the church gathering, Macheche informed others of her intention to end her life, prompting the church to initiate counselling and place her under surveillance. However, she managed to slip away unnoticed and carried out the tragic act.
Macheche is survived by two children, who were with her at the church, and her husband.
Tragically, her family has a history of suicides, with her brother and maternal grandfather having taken their own lives in the past.
“Our church mate had some social problems she was experiencing. She went to see doctors, and they diagnosed depression.
‘‘She said she was losing energy, and there was a voice telling her to commit suicide.
‘‘So this spirit attacked her while she was at the church. We prayed for her and she insisted that she was going to die.
“As women, we monitored all her movements at the church, but somehow she slipped away unnoticed. I was later informed by other members that she had committed suicide at the toilets. She used a tree bark to make a rope and hanged herself.
“Her body was conveyed to Rusape General Hospital mortuary for a post-mortem.
‘‘The church gathering commenced on Sunday and will end next Sunday. Despite the setback, the church service is progressing on well. She was accompanied to the church gathering by her two children.
‘‘Her husband came on Tuesday to collect the children and their mother’s belongings.
“When she first fell ill last year, we prayed for her, but after 30 or so minutes, she would call saying: ‘Zvinhu zviya zvatanga’. She has been threatening to take her life since last year. We heard that in her family, there is a history of suicide, as her brother and grandfather took their own lives,” said Mutambirwa.
Acting Manicaland provincial police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Wiseman Chinyoka confirmed the incident, saying investigations are underway to establish what really transpired.
“On August 25, around 11am, Tafadzwa Macheche, died after hanging herself from a tree at a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Chinyudze. A church mate, Nyasha Nhau proceeded to the toilet and she discovered Macheche’s body hanging from a tree.
She informed a church elder, Onward Mutambirwa, who reported the case to ZRP
Inyati Mine. Police attended the scene and no visible injuries were observed.
The body was conveyed to Rusape General Hospital for a post-mortem.
Investigations are underway,” he said.
