Madzibaba kidnaps congregants, promises them eternal life

By Priviledge Zviregei

Controversial apostolic sect leader Madzibaba Ishmael Chokurongerwa, an ex-convict who allegedly established a cult shortly after his release from prison, has been arrested for ‘abusing congregants’.

Madzibaba Ishmael reportedly invited his followers to reside on his farm located in Nyabira where all who followed him would be granted eternal life when the world ends.

According to sources, Madzibaba Ishmael informed his congregants that the world was on the verge of ending and referred to their place of residence as ‘Canaan’.

The congregants believed in him, as they perceived him to possess the spirit of God. Consequently, his followers constructed shelters on the farm and engaged in farming activities for survival as they awaited the purported end of the world.

However the unusual often occurred on the farm, and in an interview an escapee explained that she once attended the church seeking help on various matters when she realized that the circumstances were no longer allowing her to leave.

She claimed that the cult leader seamed to engage into some rituals that made people belong and remain in the cult. Luckily for her, she managed to get help from some women in the church and escaped before it was too late.

Moreover there were deaths of women which often occurred but bodies where buried secretly the same day. Of note, an unknown number of women died during childbirth while some children who went missing. They were never reported to the police or to the relatives of the deceased.

Authotiries say over 100 did not have birth certificates and were not allowed to go to school. Child marrieges were also prevalent as were child pregnancies.