Clad in a pair of skinny jeans, a hooded jacket, black
boots and playing the mbira, she energetically and confidently moves to African
traditional rhythms.What some in the crowd are oblivious to is that the young
woman on stage is “Christ the Messiah,” a title she has claimed for the past 19
years.She lets out a high-pitched, melodic chorus that gets the crowd worked up
as they start cheering and whistling loudly.
Shantele Nyanhete, as she is known in music circles, is in
fact Tepsy Nyanhete. But Zimbabweans have known her better over the years as
“Jekia Mambo Tenzi” or “Ishe Jesu” – the leader of the Mudzimu Unoyera cult.
This is Guruve’s famed Girl Jesus. According to information gathered by The Sunday Mail
Society, the now 25-year-old Girl Jesus has found a new love in traditional
music and she is the lead vocalist in Guruve Marimba Arts Ensemble, a group
stewarded by Ginatsia Nyanhete, also known as Jah Lemmy.
Knowledge, Tepsy’s older brother, is the director of the
group. The group released an eight-track album titled “Topinda Musango” in
2013, and has since shared the stage with mega stars like Oliver Mtukudzi and
Alick Macheso.
Her new-found love, it seems, has completely turned her
head and she now spends much of her time rehearsing or performing around
Zimbabwe with Guruve Marimba Arts Ensemble. This has – some in the community
say – resulted in her parents grooming another Girl Jesus in the form of Tespy’s
younger sister, Moses.
Their father Enias Nyanhete, who is also known as Baba
Joseph, denied the crew a chance to interview the new Girl Jesus, and also
claimed the “original” Girl Jesus was not a musician now. “Mambo Jesu is not
part of the band, she is still very committed to her duties,” he said.
“However, she will not be able to see you today because
when she was persecuted and killed 2 000 years ago it was because Mambo Tenzi
was not selective on the people he helped,” he said in reference to the betrayal
and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. “Now she knows better. She is also angry since
some of her demands have not been met by relevant authorities.
Like I said, she said she is still Jesus and no one will
replace her. Vana vangu vese vanemasimba iwaya. Ko ini ndimbori nevana here?
“When we were arrested in 2006, Moses was only three,
however she stunned everyone by reading the Bible, warning the authorities
against arresting us.”
Several sources close to the musical outfit said Tepsy had
ventured into music full-time. “At 25, she is a grown woman and she sees women
of her age having families and she yearns for that,” said a source.
“From the look of things she wants to be her own person and
live a normal life,” one of them said. Her song from the group’s album titled
“Ndaiti Ndikakura” has lyrics that appear to bear testimony to this assertion.
Tepsy first made headlines in 1998 when she and her parents
claimed she was Jesus at the age of six. Since then Tepsy has been worshipped
by cult members and pampered like a queen. She was rarely seen.
“I am sure she looks at some women of her age and she looks
at the practices in her cult and she no longer wants that,” another source
said.
The Mudzimu Unoyera cult she led made headlines recently
when it barred its womenfolk from wearing dresses and skits, instead
recommending khaki shorts and trousers for everyone.
Their shrine accommodates a number of followers who take
turns to do chores for Girl Jesus. It is a communal arrangement in which almost
everything is shared.
Mudzimu Unoyera recognise Thursday through to Saturday as
their Sabbath, with all daily activities – including bathing – suspended during
that period.
The cult uses its own language, which they say Girl Jesus
taught them, and it is known as Titinoia Pirida. The sect even has its own
Bible – written Titinoia Pirida. Sunday mail
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