A SATANISM scare hit Hatcliffe Primary School in Harare with reports that two Grade 5 pupils grew paranormal faces that had long and sharp canine teeth while furs allegedly emerged on one of the pupils’ hand after receiving some mysterious bangles from their teacher only identified as Bhunu. Report by Everson Mushava
Riot police later intervened to restore order after close to 1 000 people — mostly parents, school children and residents — stormed the school baying for the teacher’s blood. The teacher had to seek refuge inside one of the school’s administration offices.
A police truck had its window smashed, while a police officer was hit with a stone on the cheek in the ensuing melee.
Harare acting police provincial spokesperson Assistant Inspector Tarirai Dube said the teacher admitted giving the pupils bangles, but claimed it was a way of motivating them.
“We suspect the parents, knowing that he goes to Prophet Emmanuel Makandiwa’s church, United Family International (UFIC), had some perceptions against the church and such allegations arose,” Dube said.
“We have talked to the parents and the children and we have resolved the issue. We urge people to desist from giving such alarms as it would be difficult to investigate such cases.”
Strenuous efforts to get a comment from UFIC were fruitless as the church’s spokesperson Prime Kufa and Takura Rukwati’s mobile phones went unanswered.
According to one of the pupils (name withheld), who claimed to have witnessed the bizarre incident, the two pupils (names withheld) received the bangles on Wednesday and were cautioned not to show them to their parents.
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“Yesterday (Wednesday) one of the two pupils started biting his finger and sucking blood from the wound. After a while, he complained that he was feeling dizzy. The teacher advised him to take a nap,” the pupil said.
“Then today (yesterday), one of the boys started developing long canine teeth that disfigured his face, his eyes turning bloodshot while the other grew furs on his hand.”
The other pupils allegedly started screaming before they bolted out of the classroom and reported the matter to the headmistress, only identified as Khoza. The pupil said the bangles given to the boys belonged to a certain local popular church which Bhunu is said to have admitted he belonged to after parents charged at him.
The restive crowd pelted the police vehicle with stones as Bhunu, who is reportedly only one-month old at the school, was being whisked to Borrowdale Police Station for investigations in the company of the affected pupils and their parents.
The incident came hardly a week after another satanism scare at a school in Macheke and another one in Bulawayo.
