Two die from herbal remedy

By Sindisiwe Sibanda and Sibonginkosi Mpofu

A 26 year old woman from Nkayi district in Matabeleland North is reported to have died after ingesting a herbal concoction she had been prescribed by her father to cure an ailment.

Her father, Mr Joel Moyo (60) reportedly gave Nomathemba Moyo the concoction, after she complained of severe muscular pains, which she had been suffering from for over a year.

Matabeleland North provincial police spokesperson Chief Inspector Siphiwe Makonese confirmed the incident.

“I can confirm that we are investigating a murder case where a 26-year-old woman died after drinking a traditional concoction which was given to her by her father sometime last week,” said Insp Makonese.

Insp Makonese urged the public to desist from making home-made concoctions and giving them out to sick people.

“We are very concerned about the sad sudden passing of an innocent soul and we urge members of the public to seek medical assistance from professionals and desist from preparing remedies as one will not know the cause of the sickness,” she said.

Insp Makonese said the woman was referred to United Bulawayo Hospital (UBH) for a postmortem.

In a separate incident, a four-year-old girl from Bulawayo with a hearing impairment died a few months ago, after her mother allegedly fed her a herbal concoction to help her gain speech.

The father of the girl, Mr Mbuso Ncube, reported his wife to the police leading to her arrest and that of the traditional healer who supplied the medicine.

His wife, Mrs Lindiwe Ncube of Mzilikazi suburb allegedly got the traditional medicine from a woman from Makokoba suburb, Ms Senzeni Jiyane (59), popularly known as Gogo Majiyane, who specialises in children’s illnesses. SundayNews