Controversial Mulanje South legislator Bon Kalindo has trashed government’s sentiments that there are no blood suckers in Malawi.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator has said the reports are real adding that ‘satanists’ and ‘magicians’ are behind sucking blood in the district.
Kalindo who is popularly known as ‘Winiko’ said people in his area have testified to have had strange experiences relating to the issue of blood suckers.
“What I have found out is that, people are having strange experience, they are seeing gold pipes, and light bulbs after that they get weak, if we can base our reasoning on science then it’s not true that we have blood suckers but this is not science people are dying after having such experience,” said Kalindo in an interview with the local media.
Kalindo said people in his constituency are sleeping outside their houses fearing the blood suckers.
He added that the villagers are not “ignorant” as claimed by people in other parts of the country who have faulted people in Mulanje district of spreading rumours of blood suckers.
He said in his area the educated and the uneducated as well as Christians and those who are not Christians have reported to have experienced the blood suckers.
“A councillor in my constituency told a meeting at Mulanje District Assembly that he was attacked by the blood suckers,” said Kalindo.
Kalindo then pleaded with people from his area not to kill any person suspected to be a blood suckers but to take suspects to police although he expressed reservations if the police can help in such matters.
“Some people have testified that these blood suckers turn into dogs and strange birds whenever they meet people who know some herbs for magic,” he added.
Government through its spokesperson Nicholas Dausi last week downplayed reports of blood suckers arguing they are being cooked by government critics to scare people in Mulanje.
Six people have been killed in Nsanje and Mulanje over the past three weeks after being suspected to be blood suckers or to be working with the blood suckers.