The MEC for Health, Dr Norman Mabasa, has urged the public to take note that when a pensioner suffers memory loss, they must not assume that this is the result of witchcraft, but it could be Alzheimer’s disease.

He launched an Alzheimer’s awareness campaign in a packed Thohoyandou Town Hall on Friday.

He said in the Vhembe area traditional beliefs were rife and told the crowd that when old people lost their memory, they should not assume that they had been bewitched. They should rather be sent for treatment, he added.

Mabasa said the disease was discovered 106 years ago and does not discriminate between people on the basis of their financial status or social standing. He said it was important that such awareness campaigns be held, as the disease had become a major challenge in the community. "Presently, more than 36 million people are believed to be suffering from the disease worldwide and it is believed that by 2030, 65 million in the world will be suffering from it."

Mabasa said the most famous person who had suffered from the disease had been former American President Ronald Regan.

He added that although the disease is not curable, the victims can be protected. He told the elderly that he would take the campaign to the other areas of Limpopo, as he believed many people still clung to old beliefs that any signs of disease were the result of witchcraft.

Ms Colette Jansen van Vuuren from Alzheimer's South Africa said it was sad that people, more especially in Limpopo, still attached witchcraft to the disease. "This year alone, three people have already been killed - one was stoned and torched while two were set alight. In the past 20 years, more than 200 people were burnt after being accused of witchcraft."