VICTORIA KASANGA writes
@SunZambian
A woman in Ndola has been fined K5, 000 for accusing her 70-year-old neighbour of killing her child through witchcraft. William Kalaba 70 of Nkwazi Township sued Rhoda Musamba, a 35 year old business woman for compensation for insults and accusing him of practising witchcraft.
Mr Kalaba told the court that on March 15, this year Ms Musamba’s child had died and the family went to bury in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He said when they came back, Ms Musamba accosted him in his yard and started yelling at him that he had killed her child.
The case was before Mapalo Local Court senior presiding magistrate Judith Bwalya sitting with Chileshe Nsofu. “She said her child used to dream about me the time she was sick and that I was a wizard and was responsible for her child’s death,” he said. He said Ms Musamba and the family threatened to kill him and his wife by burning them in their house.
He said he warned her to stop dragging his name in disrepute but continued with her accusation that he had planted some charms on their brazier. Mr Kalaba complained that his reputation had been ruined in society and wanted compensation as people in the township were now identifying him by the false accusations.
He said the fact that he was an old man did not entail that he was a wizard. In her statement, Ms Musamba said one day her daughter called her and told her that Mr Kalaba had thrown some charms on the brazier. “I poured water on the brazier and then I shouted saying ‘I have a sick child in this house and if anything happens to my child the one responsible will have no peace,’” she said.
She said when her child died and they came back from burying her, she found confusion at the funeral house and that was why she began shouting and insulting. Ms Musamba said she went back inside and did not threaten to kill Mr Kalaba. In passing judgment, the court ordered Ms Musamba to compensate Mr Kalaba with K5,000 in monthly instalments of K300 for tarnishing his reputation in society. The court said Ms Musamba admitted accusing him of killing her child.
