By Anthony Mukwita
Lusaka - Zambian police got the better of a fugitive former minister who they believed had been evading them through witchcraft, by arresting his personal witchdoctor.
The man co-operated and led police to the hiding place of Katele Kalumba, who served as finance minister under former president Frederick Chiluba, and is believed to have authorised payment of R180-million for military equipment that the country never received.
They found Kalumba sitting in a tree, working with a laptop computer and a satellite phone, bringing an end to a four-month-long search.
The former minister appeared on Thursday in a Lusaka court on charges of theft of a government vehicle.
He was arrested close to midnight on Monday in Chiengi, his home area in northern Luapula province.
In offices and pubs across the country, many people are wondering: will Kalumba manage to get out of police custody using muti, or will keeping the witchdoctor in jail neutralise it? - Independent Foreign Service