JINJA: Residents of Namagera town council in Jinja district have razed down the home of 31-year-old Bumali Terwane, a witch doctor, accusing him of killing his cousin Esau Waiswa. Waiswa succumbed to suspected food poisoning at his home in the same area on Thursday morning.
It is alleged that Waiswa developed a severe stomach ache after sharing a meal with Terwane on November 20, 2022. He was rushed to an undisclosed clinic, where he was diagnosed with an intestinal disorder following his exposure to suspected poisonous food substances. Health workers referred Waiswa to Jinja Regional Referral Hospital for better management.
He was discharged on December 6, 2022, after registering some improvements. Waiswa, however, died on Thursday morning due to the charging of the residents. They stormed Terwane’s business premises, which included a wholesale grocery shop, a beverage depot, a cosmetics shop, and a saloon, destroying the perishable merchandise before looting most of the items.
They later stormed Terwane’s home, which was about 200 meters away from the main trading center, destroyed the house, and looted household items like iron sheets and bedding, fridges, and television sets, among others. They also destroyed his banana and maize plantations and killed livestock before fleeing with the meat.
Terwane escaped from the chaotic mob together with his wife and two children, whom the angry residents attempted to lynch. Moses Mpango, one of the area residents, says that they live in a very superstitious community. He says most of the residents link all manner of deaths to either witchcraft or food poisoning.
Joseph Byakika, the LC 2 chairperson of Namegera parish, blamed police for the delayed response to the scene of the crime, which partly worsened the situation. Byakika argues that the mob resorted to attacking local leaders who were attempting to deter them from destroying and looting Terwane’s property, forcing them to retreat for their own safety.
The Jinja Deputy Resident District Commissioner, Muhammad Kigongo, says that samples were taken from the late Waiswa for testing to confirm the exact cause of his death. Kigongo says that a team of detectives has been dispatched to hunt down the mob members for appropriate action.