This archive report was first published on 1 December 2019.
Philandering Spouses Get Stuck and Struggle to Get Free ¶
On a Saturday night in December last year, a group of friends, including a clearing and forwarding agent, were enjoying drinks and nyama choma at the Voi Guest House in Voi. The agent's friend, who was married to a beautiful Digo woman from the Coast, extended an olive branch to a middle-aged woman who joined their table.
The woman and the agent's friend struck a deal to spend the rest of the night together, but things took a turn for the worse when they got stuck together. The agent, who had been persuaded not to intervene, called a security guard who broke down the door to find the two lovebirds stuck together.
A doctor by the name of Mugwenu, who is a traditional witchdoctor, was called to the scene. He is said to have the ability to make philandering spouses get stuck using his powerful kamti. Mugwenu's services are in high demand, with couples who are being cheated on resorting to witchcraft to bust their sweethearts.
According to Mugwenu, his kamti only works on married couples who are unfaithful. The complainant must convince him that they are legally married to the cheating partner before he can give out the kamti. Once the kamti is snapped shut, the hunt is on, and the unfaithful partner gets stuck.
The most recent case where a cheating husband got stuck happened in Tanners Estate in Mbale Vihiga. A 56-year-old man was found stuck with his sister-in-law at a lodge after his wife sought Mugwenu's help to bust her philandering husband.
“Before I give out that kamuti, the complainant must convince me that they are legally married to the cheating partner. I do not do mpango wa kando or boyfriend/girlfriend relationships because my kamti only works on married couples who are unfaithful,” Mugwenu said.
His services come at a cost of 48,000 Kenyan shillings, which is incurred by the victims. Mugwenu uses two types of kamti, one to 'lock' and the other to 'unlock'. The partner who is being cheated on pays to make the unfaithful couple get stuck, while the cheater pays to make Mugwenu 'unlock' them.
“My kamti can also make a woman to start bleeding heavily when she’s about to have sex with the Mpango wa Kando, while for a man, his penis will simply refuse to erect when he is with a mpango but rise to the occasion when he is with his wife,” Mugwenu said.
