Francistown — "The Zebras Choir" was on stage a few minutes entertaining guests inside the three tents at the "Day of the Traditional Doctor" occasion in Mbalambi on Saturday when a welcome omen occurred.

The choir made up of elderly women of Mbalambi in pale blue "Jeremane" dresses, was the last to sing towards the grand finale. The matriarchs of Mbalambi were making a circle as they danced to a tune they yodeled, when all of a sudden a whirlwind started shaking the main white tent and gathering dust as it swirled towards the women.

That elicited long ululations from women inside the tents and roars of approval from the men and the choir sang even louder and danced much more energetically.

To an uninitiated, the gust of wind would have been a nuisance as people had to squint to avoid the lose earth from entering their eyes, but not the dingaka, sangomas and hosannas.

Someone even shouted from among them: "Ba kotoka bakulu. Ba ha ku ti shola (They have arrived the elders. They have come to check on us)."

Apparently, this day, which has the backing of the United Nations Educational Scientific, Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) was last commemorated in Russia where over 100 countries were represented.

The Mbalambi meeting had gathered traditional healers and sangomas from as far as Molepolole, Mmadinare, Ramotswa and even South Africa.

Member of Parliament (MP) for North East, Charles Tibone delivered the message of the day while the dreadlocked chairperson Peter Kitso Mbenge released a message from Baitseanape ba Setso.

The committee was fully represented by men and women, who included the Mbenge's vice chairperson Angora Mosiame Legae and Ramotswa based Ramokae Mparitlhe, in leopard print uniform.

Besides the speeches and entertainment by the sangomas and hosannas, there was also a display table for traditional herbs where Mbenge, Legae, Mparitlhe gave advice on traditional medicine.

For instance, a member of the audience wanted to know about thunder (tladi) that it is a bird. It was after Mparitlhe was introduced as an expert in "tladi" that someone among the gawking crowd wanted to know why to them (traditional doctors) thunder was a bird.

To which the doctors said the Western way of thinking was at variance with our way of doing things.For instance, it was possible that when a snake had bitten someone, whenever a traditional doctor administered his or her herbs, someone elsewhere may vomit the venom.

"You will find that the snake was only a missile sent by an enemy to destroy you and once we administer our medicine, the enemy feels the pain," said Mparitlhe.

This prompted a member of the audience, who said his name was Nonofo Montsheng, to confess, hence corroborating Mparitlhe's explanation.

Montsheng said in 1985, he was taking down his washing from the line when a gust of wind blew a piece of log into his eye.

He did not think much of the log as, soon, he seemed to have regained his sight except for some bothersome itchiness.

"But the itchiness persisted and when I woke up in the middle of the night, my eye was swollen so badly, my face was disfigured.

"My sister took me to hospital where I was admitted for six weeks. Before I was admitted, the doctors checked my eye, but they could not find anything. In the second week, my eye had become septic and the doctors operated, but they could not find anything.

"They told me there was nothing they could do. They then called my next of kin to ask them if they were going to disgorge my eye," he related the story.

He was about to be operated on and risk losing his eye when it occurred to him to check with a traditional diviner. As he lay on the hospital bed, his sister did the running to the ngaka who told her that there was a log lodged inside Montsheng's eye.

As is the norm with people who visit traditional healers, they decided to cross check the information with another diviner.

"This time, the person was using a bible to make his divinations, but he also told my sister there was a piece of wood inside my eye. He gave my sister a small portion of herb to use after cleaning my eye.

"That night, my eye seemed to turn inside the socket, but after some time, pus came out and also the piece of wood as well as a lot of blood.

"The doctors at the hospital were completely mystified because they could not see anything.

If it was not for the traditional doctors, I could be living with one eye right now," he concluded his story.

The traditional healers also showed the on-lookers herbs that could make a woman pregnant easily, while there was also one for promotion at work.

The herb to make a woman fall pregnant is a mokhure, which the doctors said is to be boiled, and then a cup full taken to the matrimonial bed where the couple in their birthday suits would take turns to feed the other.

"Afterwards you can go to Jwaneng. I tell you, it will take 15 minutes for your wife to fall pregnant," said a smiling Legae.

As for the one to induce promotions at work, it is a parasitic plant (palamela) that attaches itself to a mophane tree stem.

"This plant once it attaches itself to the mophane stem it stays there until the mophane tree is dead. It climbs the mophane plant the way you would climb up your career ladder," explained Mparitlhe.

The day's event ended with the setting of the sun, the congregants having left the marques for the shade of a morula tree where they partook in drinking traditional sorghum brew.

But before they started imbibing and the sangomas stomping about, the chief of the village, Bernard Mbalambi, himself a traditional doctor of note, took a long swig to the disapproving murmurs of some white haired members of the audience.

"Aaaao Rra si ti nyime. Uno ngwila chose ku mande (Please, do not finish the beer)," they murmured.But plentiful, in three hefty drums, there was no doubt that by the time they left they could only say "Saaaaaank youuuu vethi mush!"