In Zambia, civil servants flee village for fear of witchcraft in the chiefdom of Chief Mukubwe in Kapiri Mposhi. The civil servants included people from the Ministries of Education, Health and Agriculture, who began abandoning their offices and fleeing the area last week along with their families.
Kapiri Mposhi District Commission, Beatrice Sikazwe confirmed the development, saying that government workers have accused the local people in Mutenda, Chibobo, Mumba Chala, Iwonde, Chilwa Island and Chibungo areas of practicing witchcraft on them and their families.
Sikazwe said the workers and their families were being tormented at night by suspected witches and that they had discovered strange items on the door ways to their houses every morning as they wake up. Items such as Kwacha notes (the Zambian currency) drenched in fresh blood and strange herbs.
Ms. Sikazwe also said some female workers are allegedly being sexually harassed in their sleep by unknown people during the night.
“Civil servants have run away from Mukubwe… they have run away because of increased witchcraft that they have been subjected to by the locals” Ms. Sikazwe said. “…they have complained that they are not sleeping well during the night because of witchcraft.”
Meanwhile, Ms. Sikazwe has threatened to withdraw all civil servants working in the area if the local people continue with the tendency of harassing them. She said that government workers have chosen to work from the area for the benefit of the community and it is not in order that the same community they are serving should harass them.
The District Commissioner said that she, along with officers from the concerned government departments, will go to the area on Monday next week to have meetings with the community to resolve the matter. She noted that the alleged behavior by the community against government workers would cause underdevelopment in area.
Ms. Sikazwe said government was committed to delivering development to its people and will not tolerate any act that impeded its smooth implementation of its policies.
