MAKONDE – While the local community is still baffled by an incident reported in last week’s edition of Mirror, in which Ndikandafhi Mampheu’s water drum was allegedly poisoned by unknown people, another similar incident has struck Makonde village again on Sunday.

Three more water drums belonging to two next-door neighbours were also allegedly contaminated with poisonous substances. The incident is under serious police investigation. Strong allegations exist that there are villagers who are selling the poisonous Temik insecticide to villagers for R20 a teaspoon.

Tension continues to mount after a villager who died of suspected food poisoning was buried recently.

The latest victims of the alleged poison scam are Tshinakaho Madala (64) and her close relative, Mashudu Madala (36), who have been staying neighbourly for the past 20 years.

Mirror visited the families on Monday to get firsthand information about the alleged poison incident. Our interview was constantly disturbed by dozens of curious community members who wanted to see the water drums. The water was oily and it had turned greenish in colour. Greenish particles of partly dissolved powder floated in both drums. The yellow beaker that has been used to scoop the water out of the drums had turned brown because of the strength of the contamination.

Mashudu explained to Mirror how she learnt that her water was contaminated: “I have stored my two water drums outside my hut for the past five years and nothing unusual ever happened to them. I took my beaker with the view of drawing some drinking water out of one drum. Before drawing the water, I saw that there was something unusual about the colour of the water in the drum. I gathered enough courage to draw the water, but my yellow beaker immediately changed to brown. Greenish substances were floating in the water and I immediately informed my neighbour, Tshinakaho, about the discovery. I knew of the allegations of water poisoning because of the incident that happened to Ndikandafhi Mampheu last week.”

Tshinakaho said she immediately went to check her water drum which she stores outside her thatched hut because she was baffled by what her neighbour had come across.

“I nearly collapsed of shock when I saw the same thing in my water drum. I am aware that there are people who are selling poison in this village. What wrong have I done to deserve all this? What if I had drunk the water during the night? That would be the end of my life because I would have drunk the poisoned water. I believe cruel people did this on Saturday night because my water was clear and very clean on Saturday afternoon. I warn other villagers to be more careful about how they store their food and water because it is no longer a secret that people are selling the deadly Temik poisonous insecticides in this village. I thank the Lord because He protected my life; otherwise, I would have died of the deadly poison.”

Insp Nkanukeni Raedani of the Thohoyandou SAPS confirmed the incidents and said police have registered a case of suspected water poisoning. He said the water has been taken for forensic tests and the results will be communicated to the complainants as soon as they are available. “It is now the second time in two weeks that we have registered a similar case in the village. We have taken the matter in a very serious light and we request community members to assist us in our investigations. We urge community members to store their food and water securely to avoid the same incidents in the village.”

Raedani said police are also investigating a house breaking and theft case in which the village farmers reported that their storeroom had been broken into and insecticides had been stolen. He said three suspects were arrested in connection with the case.

* Meanwhile, villagers were astonished to discover that a 25l water bucket had allegedly been contaminated with the deadly Temik insecticide at a funeral on Saturday. At a meeting held at the headman’s palace lately, villagers urged the Makonde Royal Council and the Civic Association to tighten security at the village dam because there are allegations that there are suspects who are threatening to contaminate the water with the deadly Temik.