Villagers bust pastor's night runner wife

By Maureen Akinyi

A nagging 'ghost' in Nyamataro village in Kisii has been throwing pebbles on people's rooftops in the wee hours of the night, excreting on people's doorsteps and wiping itself on the door and uproot crops. Villagers were so fed up with the night runner. Recently, a smart Mzee Okari who was tired of finding faeces smeared on his door, came up with a solution. He fixed several sharp blades on the door and applied pepper so that when the culprit smeared faeces, the blades and pepper would offer the sweet burning revenge. In the dead of the night, the night runner did the usual rituals from one house to another.

The night runner’s journey was eventful until she reached Mzee Okari’s house. She defecated on the doorstep and as usual smeared the stuff on the door. A razor sharp scream that tore into the night awoke Mzee Okari as he jumped out armed himself with a rungu ready to rain blows on the night runner who had caused the village untold humiliation.

Shock was written all over his face when he opened his door to find the local pastor’s wife lying on the doorstep and writhing in pain.

"Please forgive me," pleaded the pastor’s wife. Mzee Okari called his wife and together they screamed to alert neighbours who responded immediately.

Villagers came ready to kill a creature that has been terrorising them in the dead of the night.

Everyone was shocked when they finally laid their eyes on the ‘ghost’.

"It was my parents who taught me the habit," she pleaded as some insisted she be lynched. Even the pastor woke up to find out what was happening.

He was beyond words when he realised it is his wife who was doing the evil things.

The locals were so enraged and were baying for her blood, but the pastor who is highly respected pleaded with them.

She was spared the lynch but was mercilessly chased from the village to return to her parent’s land.