Two ‘ingcibi’ run for the hills as BCM swoops on illegal school

SIXTEEN underage and dehydrated initiates and their unregistered surgeons ( ingcibi) ran for the hills yesterday after Buffalo City Metro authorities swooped on an illegal initiation school in Amalinda, East London.

The boys got themselves circumcised without the knowledge of their parents more than a week ago, and from November 18 until yesterday they were given very little water.

When BCM law enforcement and health officials – accompanied by Chief Stanley Makinana, who is also part of the council – arrived at the illegal camp, someone raised the alarm.

Immediately, two men emerged from a hut and started running. The young initiates followed, but were urged to return by Makinana and the BCM officials.

Eventually after much convincing, the initiates returned to where the officials and media were gathered.

When the boys arrived, BCM circumcision coordinator Mbulelo Matayi asked the initiates whether they had had any water. According to them, the last time they had a proper drink of water was before they came to the initiation school on November 18.

The Dispatch understands that the parents of five of the boys have each opened criminal cases at the Cambridge police station.

Makinana said authorities were under siege from unscrupulous individuals posing as surgeons to make quick cash.

“We are facing a challenge of people who are after money; they don’t care about the health of the boys. Illegal circumcision is on the rise – the parents of the boys are distraught.”

Makinana said the bushes around BCM were full of illegal initiation schools.

Makinana said authorities were on the lookout for men who circumcised boys and then left them for dead.

According to Makinana, a criminal wanted by the police was chased away from an initiation school in Amalinda forest where he had been hiding from the police for weeks.

“He was living among the initiates pretending to be an initiate. We reported the matter to the police.”

Makinana said the tradition was so polluted that foreign objects were used to treat the boys.

Makinana said he had also alerted the police about a 25-yearold man who carried a backpack, going around to schools convincing young boys to undergo circumcision.

Chairman of the Buffalo City Traditional Circumcision Association Andile Siko said unscrupulous individuals were giving the tradition a bad name.

“We have a problem of ‘Jack and Jills’ with okapi knives who go around chopping and then leaving.”

“I would like to urge parents to go to local clinics and hospitals to view a database of qualified and licensed surgeons.”

Siko said most of the illegal surgeons were convicted criminals. Siko added that negligence at initiation schools was fuelled by high levels of alcoholism.

“The initiation schools are becoming taverns”.

The Eastern Cape department of social development has been approached to offer food parcels to some of the initiates whose parents struggle to feed them.

One of the initiates who secretly underwent circumcision, was an orphan from an Amalinda orphanage. The 17-year-old told the Dispatch no one knew where he was.

The surprise visit at the schools was one in a series of stops planned by the local authorities to get rid of bad elements surrounding the traditional Xhosa ritual.

As part of the Mababuye Bephila circumcision campaign, local authorities visited various initiation schools inspecting the progress of initiates.

Mataya said it was imperative for boys who are about to undergo circumcision, to start at the clinic for screenings.

Police Captain Mluleki Mbi said the two men were still at large. —