Why retired cleric is an instant hit beyond Tanzania

By Martin Mutua

A small outpost village in Ngorongoro, Tanzania, is a hive of activity.

Thousands of people flock the area to seek for a concoction described as medicine for several terminal diseases.

Rev Ambilikile Mwasapile, a retired cleric, is the brains behind the concoction.

Sample this: The stretch of vehicles heading to Loliondo was about 5km last week. However, this week it has grown to about 30km, according to witnesses who have visited the area.

- Hundreds of patients arrive in convoys at a tiny village in Tanzania to seek cure from Rev Ambilikile Mwasapile. [PHOTOS: BBC]

But the retired cleric is not moved by this demand.

Says he: "I am like the hand of God. He has instructed me to do this. It first came as a dream in 1991, later in 2009 when I first administered the healing drink to my first patient.

Wonder medicine

Thereafter, he was tested for his illness and found to have been cured. That is when other people started coming here. I officially started this work in July, last year."

He administers the ‘drug’ to the high and the mighty in Tanzania and the ordinary people at his Samunge village, Sale District in Loliondo.

The cleric claims he discovered the wonder ‘medicine’ two months ago.

And deep into the Ngorongoro National Park where the village is situated, Mwasalipe threatens to rival President Jakaya Kikwete’s popularity owing to the large crowds that gather in this tiny village.

According to media reports from Tanzania and by the BBC, Mwasalipe’s concoction consists of a poisonous plant in the area known as Elamuriak.

The ‘drug’ reportedly cures terminal diseases such as cancer, high blood pressure, HIV and Aids and diabetes.

The drug is the reason thousands of people have braved the rugged park roads and spent chilly and dusty nights around his compound for the past two months to book an appointment with him.

According to the BBC, Mwasalipe, 76, a retired preacher with the Lutheran Church, is an instant hit in Tanzania.

And the news of this miracle cure is spreading like bushfire with reports in the local media and even blogs and facebook updates partly fuelling his popularity.

However, the ‘medicine’ is no ordinary drug — it is only Mwasalipe himself who can administer it. It ceases to be effective if administered by anybody else.

"It has to be administered by babu himself. I can tell you I have witnessed people who have been healed," adds a Tanzania in one of the social network sites.

The crowds have been growing by the day since the retired cleric began administering the ‘medicine’, which is in liquid form and given out in a cup.

And the Tanzanian Government has been forced to provide security to the cleric by deploying police to control the large crowds.

- Rev Ambilikile Mwasapile. He claims to make a ‘drug’ that cures chronic diseases. [PHOTOS: BBC]

Visits curtailed

Mwasalipe makes the concoction out of a mixture of herbs and water. The light brown liquid costs Tanzanian Sh500, an equivalent to five US cents. But according to him, it is potent. One needs to drink only a cup and will be cured of his diseases.

The high demand for Mwasalipe’s services has prompted the Tanzanian Government to curtail further visits to the area. Those travelling to Loliondo through Arusha are being turned away.

But the move has not deterred Tanzanians and some Kenyans who have got wind of the news from crossing over to Arusha using ‘panya’ (unofficial) routes. Foreigners from far and wide have also joined in the queue to Loliondo for the cure.

Mwasalipe says he has cured patients from Oman, Germany and neighbouring countries.

"Tumwombee babu aendelee kuwepo na kama inawezekana pia serikali imsaidie hakika wengi watapona kupitia yeye," (Let’s pray for the old man to live longer. If possible, the Government should assist him. For sure many people will be healed through him), adds Anither Kitteni, a Tanzanian through a Facebook comment.

And at the weekend top Tanzanian government officials are said to have caused a major stampede by disrupting the smooth flow of the crowds when they sought to be accorded priority for treatment.