Granny (65) disappears near dam
..family awaits reunion
THE family of a 65-year-old Chigodora woman who disappeared without a trace last month still believes that she will emerge alive from Jeke Dam in Mutare.
They believe she was seized by mermaids. Tomorrow (Saturday) will mark a full month since Gogo Ennie Muchairi nee Muperere (65) of Nehwangura Village disappeared near Jeke Dam in Chigodora area of Mutare District.
Her belongings were found on the dam wall a day after she went missing.
Gogo Muchairi’s son, Joseph Muchairi, said they made a police report and the police’s Sub-Aqua Unit visited the dam to search for her body, all to no avail.
“After making a police report, the police responded swiftly, but deep down as a family we knew that they would not find her as she was possessed with a mermaid spirit she inherited from her late grandmother. As we grew up, she used to be a spiritual healer, but had converted to Christianity,” he said.
The Weekender understands that Gogo Muchairi was a well-known spiritual healer in the area and would allegedly use the mermaids’ powers to assist people.
However, after being born again a few years ago, she discarded the mermaids’ paraphernalia.
She was now a Johane Marange Apostolic Church devotee.
When she went missing, Gogo Muchairi was looking for reeds, something that she had never done before as she was afraid to be near water bodies from the time she discarded her mermaid spirits’ paraphernalia.
Sekuru Funny Muchairi said his wife was acting strange on the day she went missing.
“I wanted to collect the reeds on my own the day she disappeared, but she begged to accompany me. She never made such requests before. She never visited the dam or went anywhere near it. She would always tell me that she was afraid that the mermaids would punish her for turning her back on them,” he said.
He added that she always told her family that she had unfinished business with the mermaids.
“On the day, it appeared like she was following me to the dam because she was walking a few metres behind me, even though we were going there together.
“When we arrived at the dam, she collected the reeds quickly and advised me to go a little further down to look for my own reeds while she stayed behind. When I returned a few minutes later, she was nowhere to be found. She had disappeared,” he said.
A search party of at least 60 villagers combed the area and the nearby mountains for two days.
However, they could not get any leads. The family later made a police report. Manicaland provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Nobert Muzondo confirmed that a police report was made, but could not be drawn into shedding more light on the ongoing investigations.
But Joseph is convinced that mermaids have something to do with his mother’s disappearance.
Said Joseph: “Suspicions are that mermaids seized her for their unfinished business. Her knobkerrie and bundle of reeds were later found on the dam wall. We consulted a prophet who confirmed that mermaids seized her.”
He said even though his mother had converted to Christianity, she had not attended any church service since 2020.
“We suspect that she had let her guard down by not going to church. I pray for her safe return. Anyone willing to assist us can do so because we love and miss our mother,” he said.
He said a prophet they consulted assured them that she would return after three days.
After realising that the three days had lapsed with no sign of the elderly woman, the prophet shifted goalposts and said she would only resurface after finishing her marine assignment.
He said she had angered the spirits by discarding their paraphernalia.
Headman Nehwangura said traditional rituals were done at Jeke Dam to ensure the woman’s safe return.
“The family was instructed not to mourn and to patiently wait for their mother’s return. They should adhere to the instructions,” he said.
When contacted for comment, Sekuru Chiposi Sithole, a traditional healer, said marine spirits tend to be vengeful when their paraphernalia is discarded.
“She will come back. This is not a rare case. Such cases have been happening across Zimbabwe and they should be rest assured that she will be resurface.
“Mermaids are usually ruthless on those who spite them. She made a mistake by destroying her healing paraphernalia,” he said.