Religious leaders and traditional healers took centre stage in Ngcobo this weekend as they performed prayers and rituals to cleanse the town of its “demons” and reputation as a crime hotspot.
The massive cleansing ceremony, hosted by safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana and provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Liziwe Ntshinga, kicked off on Friday night.
About 20 traditional healers slaughtered a black goat, before visiting the Ngcobo police station, as well as the controversial Angels Ministry Church in Nyanga village and the R61 where two police officers were hijacked and killed by armed gunmen last month.
The team also performed rituals on the same route at a spot where three police officers from North West died after their vehicle hit a horse, a few days after the shocking murder of five police members and an off-duty soldier.
The healers, led by 78-year-old Nxoboni “Bhekiyeza” Mziwentsini, also went up the mountain behind the church, which has now been shut down.
Around 4am on Saturday, the team slaughtered a white goat which was later cooked and eaten.
Mziwentsini explained that the black goat symbolised a dark cloud that had engulfed Ngcobo.
“We then slaughtered a white goat afterwards to show that the dark cloud had been cast away and that new light had dawned for the people of Ngcobo.”
Yesterday it was the turn of religious leaders to perform their own rituals.
They also went and prayed at the same sites, including the Angels Ministry Church which is run by the seven sons of the late Siphiwo Mancoba and Noluvo Mancoba.
The Daily Dispatch previously reported that three of the Mancoba sons – Philile, Xolisa and Thandazile – were shot and killed following a gun battle between the police and suspects linked to the murder of the five police members.
Three other brothers – Banele, Ephraim and Phuthumile – were among the church members arrested in the aftermath.
The only remaining son, Benjamin, was found sitting on the stoep in one of the houses when an entourage comprising police, clergy, residents and traditional healers arrived to conduct rituals yesterday while his mother lay under blankets in her bedroom.
Benjamin told the media he was pained by what had befallen his family, adding that his three deceased brothers had been cremated in East London.
Both cooperative governance and traditional affairs MEC Fikile Xasa and Ntshinga, while addressing more than a thousand people who had converged at the Nyanga High School for the main prayer service, described the cleansing ceremony as a new start for Ngcobo.
However Xasa, who was filling in for Tikana who arrived late at the main prayer service event, lamented the fact that government had failed to act when the Mancoba church was first raided by police and social workers back in 2016.
“To deny children education was a declaration of war. We should have responded to that back then,” said Xasa.
The seven Mancoba brothers had publicly confirmed that they did not encourage anyone to go to school following the 2016 raid on their premises where about 23 young children, most without even any form of documentation, were rescued by social workers and the police.
Ntshinga on the other hand said they had started instituting some short term measures at the Ngcobo police station to prevent another ambush.
These include locking the main gate at night and providing additional personnel.
“People who want to be helped at night will have to yell outside,” Ntshinga said. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
Clergy, healers perform spiritual cleansing ceremony in Ngcobo
The massive cleansing ceremony, hosted by safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana and provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Liziwe Ntshinga, kicked off on Friday night.
About 20 traditional healers slaughtered a black goat, before visiting the Ngcobo police station, as well as the controversial Angels Ministry Church in Nyanga village and the R61 where two police officers were hijacked and killed by armed gunmen last month.
The team also performed rituals on the same route at a spot where three police officers from North West died after their vehicle hit a horse, a few days after the shocking murder of five police members and an off-duty soldier.
The healers, led by 78-year-old Nxoboni “Bhekiyeza” Mziwentsini, also went up the mountain behind the church, which has now been shut down.
Around 4am on Saturday, the team slaughtered a white goat which was later cooked and eaten.
Mziwentsini explained that the black goat symbolised a dark cloud that had engulfed Ngcobo.
“We then slaughtered a white goat afterwards to show that the dark cloud had been cast away and that new light had dawned for the people of Ngcobo.”
Yesterday it was the turn of religious leaders to perform their own rituals.
They also went and prayed at the same sites, including the Angels Ministry Church which is run by the seven sons of the late Siphiwo Mancoba and Noluvo Mancoba.
The Daily Dispatch previously reported that three of the Mancoba sons – Philile, Xolisa and Thandazile – were shot and killed following a gun battle between the police and suspects linked to the murder of the five police members.
Three other brothers – Banele, Ephraim and Phuthumile – were among the church members arrested in the aftermath.
The only remaining son, Benjamin, was found sitting on the stoep in one of the houses when an entourage comprising police, clergy, residents and traditional healers arrived to conduct rituals yesterday while his mother lay under blankets in her bedroom.
Benjamin told the media he was pained by what had befallen his family, adding that his three deceased brothers had been cremated in East London.
Both cooperative governance and traditional affairs MEC Fikile Xasa and Ntshinga, while addressing more than a thousand people who had converged at the Nyanga High School for the main prayer service, described the cleansing ceremony as a new start for Ngcobo.
However Xasa, who was filling in for Tikana who arrived late at the main prayer service event, lamented the fact that government had failed to act when the Mancoba church was first raided by police and social workers back in 2016.
“To deny children education was a declaration of war. We should have responded to that back then,” said Xasa.
The seven Mancoba brothers had publicly confirmed that they did not encourage anyone to go to school following the 2016 raid on their premises where about 23 young children, most without even any form of documentation, were rescued by social workers and the police.
Ntshinga on the other hand said they had started instituting some short term measures at the Ngcobo police station to prevent another ambush.
These include locking the main gate at night and providing additional personnel.
“People who want to be helped at night will have to yell outside,” Ntshinga said. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
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