MAKONDE – The once peaceful village of Makonde, north of Thohoyandou, is still shocked by an incident in which a villager’s 1 000 litre water drum was allegedly contaminated with poisonous substances.

Mr Ndikandafhi Mampheu (57) said he believes his water was poisoned by jealous people who do not want to see him prosper in life. He told Mirror that he keeps his drum of water outside his house and “cruel people gained entrance into my yard through a hole in the fence last Tuesday night, and then performed the awful deed.”

On seeing that his water had been tampered with, Mampheu reported the matter to the village headman, who informed the police.

When Mirrorvisited the family on Sunday, the allegedly poisoned water drum was still there, resting innocently next to the family’s mango tree. The water had turned greenish, with strange particles of floating on the water.

Scores of villagers lined up in disbelief to have a glance at the drum. A green metal beaker, used to fetch the water out of the drum, turned black because of the alleged powerful substance in the water.

“If the water is strong enough to damage the metal beaker, what would happen to the human stomach?” asks Mampheu.

An employee of the Department of Public Works, Mampheu explained how he found out that his water was contaminated. “My cousin came to visit me last week Wednesday morning. He said he was thirsty and he took a beaker with the view of drinking water from the drum. He noticed that there was something unusual about the water and he immediately came back with the beaker which had changed colour in-stantly. The water was very clean the previous day and I immediately warned my family members not to use it because I was sniffing death.”

Mampheu says he believes his water was poisoned because there are allegations of people who are selling poisonous substances around the village. “Everyone knows that there are people who are selling poison like spices. I now warn other members of the community to be more careful about how they store their food and water because these people are thirsty for blood.”

Insp Nkanukeni Raedani of the Thohoyandou SAPS confirmed that a case of suspected poisoned water had been registered with the police. “We regard the matter in a serious light and we have also taken the water for forensic tests. We will inform the complainant as soon as we receive the results from our forensic department.”

As for the people who are allegedly selling poison in the village, Insp Raedani said police have arrested three suspects for breaking into a farm workshop where insecticides were stolen.

“We have registered a case of the farmers in the village, who said the workshop in which they store their insecticides had been broken into. Three suspects were arrested and will appear in court soon. We are working around the clock to establish if the alleged selling of poison and Mampheu’s case are linked to the disap-pearance of the harmful insecticides.”

Meanwhile, hundreds of villagers converged at Makonde village’s headman’s palace to register their anger about the villagers who are allegedly selling poison for R20 a teaspoon, in the village. Names of the people who are allegedly selling the poison were mentioned and a list of those who had bought the poison was handed to the royal council. The poison is allegedly sold at pension pay points, shebeens and in people’s houses. The meeting came into being after a villager, who died of suspected food poisoning, was buried on Saturday. A member of Makonde Civic Association, Mr Thilivhali Masia, appealed to the villagers to be more careful with the food given to them by fellow community members, because of the poison scourge.