The late Professor Itai Muwati’s brother alleges that his sibling was killed at Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa’s shrine due to disagreements over certain directives.
Madzibaba Ishmael allegedly instructed all men to forsake their non-virgin wives upon marriage, pledging to provide them with virgins as replacements — an edict that Professor Muwati apparently opposed.
Admire was speaking on Tilder’s show on StarFM on Tuesday, where he alleged that his brother was killed. He said (via H-Metro):
Madzibaba Ishmael akaudza vadzidzi vake kuti kana wakaroora mukadzi wako asiri mhandara murambe tinokupa mumwe mukadzi achiri wechidiki ari mhandara.
Varume pavakatanga kunzwa zvemadzimai manyowani vakatanga kusimudza musoro vachiti uku kwanaka kunopihwa madzimai emahara.
Ishmael akazoita munamato wembiya achiita varume kuti misana yavo isimbe nekuti vakange vave kuda kunoita zvevakadzi vakawanda.
Vanhu vese vakanwa from mbiya iyoyo vakabva vaita sokunge vaputirwa zvokuti hapana anonzwisisa ukada kutaura naye kunze kwekunge ndi Ishmael ariye ataura.
(If you try to have a conversation with them, and try to tell them anything bad about Ishmael, they will tell you that “Mambo Ishmael” said we should do this and that.)
According to Admire, his brother suffered a brutal assault at the hands of Madzibaba Ishmael, following a village court session at the farm. He said:
There came a time when my brother said what was happening at the church was not right because of the way that people were dying and also if you tried to go against “Mwari” Ishmael, you would die a mysterious death.
My brother was just addressing them as a learned person that the way they were now worshipping was not right.
There was a misunderstanding, among his right hand-men, and there was a village court at the farm, so Ishmael said God had instructed that my brother should die, they took their sticks and started beating my brother.
Admire said they were now seeking help to go and retrieve the late professor’s property. He said:
Our brother had wealth and properties and we are now looking for help to go get the things that he left there.
He left behind six children and it is difficult for us to take care of them so we need to go and get the cattle and other domestic animals that he left behind.
In 2022, he told us that he had 27 cattle, meaning that right now if we collect them we can start from somewhere so that his family and children are taken care of and go to school.
Admire said that his brother’s relationship with Madzibaba Ishmael soured when the latter instructed congregants to liquidate their possessions and sever ties with their families. He said:
I went against what Madzibaba Ishmael was saying and I left the church.
During that time, many men left their jobs because that is what they were told by Ishmael, my brother continued with his work at the University of Zimbabwe.
When Ishmael was arrested and jailed for four years, and upon his return he went to stay in Murehwa, one of his congregants found plots in Nyabira.
They invited everyone that they used to worship with to go and stay in Nyabira and they referred to it as their land of milk and honey (Canaan).
They were told to sell their phones, beds and televisions, his followers were doing anything and everything he said to the extent that he was referred to as god.
Chokurongerwa and seven of his followers were arrested recently and appeared before Norton magistrate Christine Nyandoro. The court denied them bail, and they were remanded in custody until April 4 for routine proceedings.
The charges against them stem from alleged violations of the Burial and Cremation Act and the Children’s Act.
The co-accused are members of the Johane Masowe-aligned Gore Jena Penyera Nyika. Their names include Shingirai Ngawafune (42), Takavengwa Gwenzi (55), Zebedia Sigudu (49), Devlodge Katsande (47), Wonder Kabaya (41), and Siribinio Chikurunhe (53). All were represented by lawyer Purity Chikanganise during the court proceedings.
The State alleges that Chokurongerwa and his associates conducted funeral services for Hazel Chikunhire and Winlet Kabaya without obtaining proper burial orders for the deceased. This violation raises serious legal concerns, as proper documentation is essential for respectful and lawful burials.
Furthermore, the sect leaders, who acted as guardians for the children residing at the church’s compound in Nyabira, are accused of neglecting, abandoning, and exposing the children to conditions likely to cause unnecessary suffering. The welfare of these vulnerable children is at the heart of the charges brought against the accused.
In a related incident, police raided the farm where the sect operated and rescued 251 children. Shockingly, 246 of these children were found to have no birth certificates, highlighting potential issues related to their legal identity and rights.
Additionally, during the investigation, authorities discovered 16 graves near Madzibaba Ishmael’s shrine. These graves were determined to belong to nine adults and seven children. The circumstances surrounding these burials remain a subject of scrutiny.
More: Pindula News