A Chitungwiza prophet from the Johanne Masowe yeChishanu church is accused of having sex with a congregant’s wife who had sought spiritual assistance.
The matter came before the Chitungwiza Civil Court where Madzibaba Tatenda Machemba was being sued by the husband of the woman who attended his church. The husband claims Machemba is causing him distress.
Machemba alleges that the husband (whose name is known to the court) from New Zengeza is disrupting his church services. He claims the man arrived at the church, destroying property and later following him home with violent intentions.
Machemba, a resident of Zengeza 5, detailed the events before Magistrate Dennis Mangosi.
“On that day, he came to my church and brandished weapons, threatening violence. I was at home when I received calls from church members informing me of the disturbance. He went on a rampage, smashing church property including the toilet, buckets, and cups, attacking people at the church, and breaking the solar panels. After this, he followed me home and told my wife that he intended to burn me alive,” Machemba testified.
Machemba further stated that upon arriving at his home, the man grabbed his wife by the throat, choking and assaulting her.
“He threatened to ensure I wouldn’t live for many more years,” Machemba added.
When asked by the magistrate why he was being harassed, Machemba stated he had no quarrel with the man but suspected that other church members were instigating the attacks to destroy his church.
“It’s astonishing; why does he continue to attack me like this when we are both religious people? Are you the only prophet with a church, because we know many other prophets with churches around Chitungwiza, such as Madzibaba Bhobha, Madzibaba Socks, Madzibaba Simba and others of renown?” the magistrate questioned.
However, Machemba insisted he had done nothing wrong to the man.
When questioned about his actions – the destruction of his neighbour’s property and harassment – the husband responded: “Your Worship, the issue is that Madzibaba Machemba is a false prophet. He raped my wife, threatening her life if she revealed the incident. He had a cup which he claimed had mystical powers, so my wife succumbed out of fear. It wouldn’t surprise me if he has raped many other women from his church.”
He explained that he works in Kadoma while his wife lives in Chitungwiza, where she attended Machemba’s church. He stated that he forgave his wife for the rape.
“Initially, I saw messages from Madzibaba Machemba harassing my wife, saying that if she was wanted, I should contact Econet to trace her. So I devised a plan to investigate. I pretended to need spiritual assistance at his church, and that’s when he started accusing me of adultery and questioning me in front of the congregation about my last sexual encounter with my wife – a clear attempt to humiliate me and lure my wife,” the husband explained.
He claims that while with his wife, Machemba spoke in what he described as tongues, saying: “Madzimai, I see that your husbands are not providing for you.” The husband believes this was Machemba’s tactic to gain his wife’s trust.
“My wife later told me that she was raped by the prophet after he said he wanted to come to the house to conduct a house blessing prayer. She said during this, the prophet was chanting ‘Dhaipero, Dhaipero, Dhaiperooo-o’ as if speaking in tongues. He pretended to be in a spiritual trance while committing adultery with my wife. It’s a case of ‘the places we think are sacred are where our wives are defiled’ – a proverb meaning that places we consider holy are where our wives are most vulnerable,” he stated.
Magistrate Mangosi, clearly disturbed by the allegations, summoned the wife to inquire if she still attended Machemba’s church. She confirmed she no longer did following the conflict.
However, the magistrate stated that he could not rule on the rape allegation as the Civil Court’s jurisdiction is primarily focused on minor disputes and reconciliation.
“Your wife, whom you claim was raped by Madzibaba Machemba, is an adult, so we cannot represent her; she knows whether the sexual act was consensual or forced. She is not a minor that we can refer to the police. If such a case is reported, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Court,” the magistrate explained.
Magistrate Mangosi warned both Machemba and the husband to maintain peace and issued them each a peace order.
The court interpreter was Duvekile Sithole.
