Those who are banking on the purported windfall of miracle money at Lambani for their Christmas plans are in for a big letdown. The secret is now out - there is no miracle money at Lambani.

In August this year, rumours spread like wildfire that a church in the area was praying for people and then they got “miracle amounts” of money in their bank accounts.

People streamed from all corners of the country to be the first to get the cash. Some even kept a vigil outside the pastor's home to be the first ones to be prayed for.

This paper ran a story of people alleged to have received massive bank increases in their accounts. Some of those who allegedly got hundreds of thousands in cash are said to have brought the money to the church for all to see and that the pastor prayed for it. It was said to be happening at The Tower of Prayer Christian Centre in the village.

The church is under the leadership of Pastor Azwihangwisi Nemavhoyini, who is said to be behind the miracle money.

After intensive investigations in the community, meeting the pastor who is alleged to be making “miracle money” and meeting people whose bank cards were prayed for, Limpopo Mirror can now safely say that there is no “miracle money” at Ha Lambani.

No one in the village is prepared to stand up and testify that they got the “miracle money”. All they are prepared to say is that the pastor is in the best position to talk about the money. They also refused to show any of the money and could not even give proof as to what they had bought with the money.

The origin of the bundles of cash that was displayed during the church service is not known up to now. The police also do not have a clue regarding the hundreds of thousands of rands displayed during the church service.

Many people, including religious leaders, have come out strongly against the “miracle money,” saying it was misleading God’s people. Now many have come out in the open and are alleging that the “miracle money” was just a scam by the pastor and her spiritual father, Pastor Orbet Muyanalo of Orbet Ministries.

Speaking in low tones, some of those who visited the church in August said they had lost a lot of money in the hope that they would get more money in return. Ms Maria Mudau (not her real name) said she visited the church after hearing of the miracle money over the radio.

“I had to travel all the way to Lambani, which is far from where I stay. When I arrived I found many people from all over the area. They were all waiting for the pastor, who arrived very late. We were told to open our hearts and to hand over our old bank cards and cash in one plastic bag, so that they could pray for them. The money did not come back and we were given our bank cards back and told to wait until the following Sunday. Till now, nothing has happened and my money and my trust in the pastor are all gone. I just believe this was a scam as no other person received any miracle money. This pastor is a con artist who should be exposed once and for all. She is tarnishing the name of God for her greedy ends. If there is any association for pastors, I just feel that they should blacklist her,” she said.

Contrary to expectations, life has not changed for locals. They still have to endure poverty, even though rumours of the miracle money abound. A resident who preferred anonymity said: “We know this woman, she is a big liar. No one received any miracle money. You can see we are all suffering here and if there were any money, we would be the first to know,” she said.

She said the pastor had marital problems and could not help others as she was failing to resolve her own. “This woman needs God. She needs help before she could make claims of miracle money,” she said.

A few months ago, the pastor caused a stir when, live on the air, she said she regretted having accepted an invitation to feature on an SABC TV programme, because her husband phoned during the programme and said he condemned the claims of miracle money and that they were malicious.

In our follow-up, Pastor Nemavhoyini, who had failed to provide any proof of people who got the money after promising to do so, was very hostile, saying that the paper had nearly destroyed her church. “You wrote a very malicious article and I want nothing to do with you,” she said.

Subsequent enquiries to her were met with answers like ''Vha khou toda mini kha nne, a thi tsha amba na muthu,'' which loosely translates into ''what do you want from me, I am no longer speaking to people'', before she hung up the phone.