By 
A Lusaka courtroom was left stunned on Friday after chilling video evidence revealed that two alleged witchdoctors were hired to use witchcraft in a plot to kill President Hakainde Hichilema, with fugitive former Member of Parliament Emmanuel, Jay Jay Banda named as the alleged mastermind.
The court heard that Banda’s mother allegedly instructed a Mozambican traditional healer, Jasten Mabulesse Candude, to “ensure that the President dies.”
The dramatic revelations were made before Lusaka Magistrate, Fines Mayambu, as part of ongoing criminal proceedings involving Candude and his co-accused, Leonard Phiri.
Also implicated was former Lumezi MP, Munir Zulu, who is currently serving a sentence for seditious practices and criminal libel.
Candude claimed Zulu had asked him to bring traditional medicines for Banda.
In a police-recorded video played in court, Candude and Phiri demonstrated the use of traditional concoctions—including a live chameleon, red cloth, powdered substances, and an animal tail—believed to be used for spiritual rituals.
“I was told the person we were supposed to kill was the one we saw on TV… Hakainde Hichilema. He is our president,” Phiri said during the interview, adding that they intended to apply the concoction on a road the president was expected to use.
“We cut the tail of a chameleon, inject it, and in about five days, the person dies,” he claimed.
The video showed Candude wrapped in a red cloth, beating himself with what he described as the “tail of a witchdoctor” while displaying numerous containers allegedly filled with traditional remedies for healing, luck, and protection.
While both men admitted being asked to carry out the ritual, Candude denied having medicine specifically for killing.
Phiri said he was contacted by a man named Nelson, reportedly Banda’s younger brother, and paid K5,000 for the job—his first attempt at using such methods to harm someone.
During cross-examination, a police video technician acknowledged that he was visibly shaken while recording the session, particularly due to the presence of the live chameleon.
Defence lawyers challenged the authenticity of the footage, arguing it may have been edited and noting that the accused also spoke about healing practices, not just harmful ones.
Traditional Health Practitioners Association of Zambia (THPAZ) Secretary General, Abel Chanda, called as a state witness, testified that while items such as animal tails and herbs are common in traditional medicine, their purpose could not be determined from appearance alone.
“According to our rules, we give medicine to heal, not to kill. Those who kill are not traditional doctors, they are witchdoctors,” Chanda said, clarifying that neither suspect is registered with THPAZ.
He further noted that the association did not regulate foreign practitioners unless they were formally registered in Zambia.
The accused have not admitted to previously committing murder but confessed to possessing knowledge and materials capable of causing harm.
The trial has been adjourned to July 18.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.
Comments