By Vasco Chaya

HARARE – Strange occult-related happenings reportedly hit Ellis Robins Boys High School (Ellis Robins) in Harare last week, thereby, disrupting classes and learning processes.

Confirming the development, students at the Mabelreign school said first signs of the occult appeared when students experienced weird nightmares.

“Blood” was also seen in one of the bathtubs at the school.

However, Ellis Robins school head Shingi Museruka declined to comment on the issue yesterday before referring the Daily News to the district education officer.

Efforts to obtain a comment from Warren Park Mabelreign district education officer were futile by the time of going to print.

“Most students from virtually all the classes dreamed horror images and one of the students saw a horrifying person with green flashing eyes holding a vessel of oil,” one of the students who declined to be named said.

“After the nightmares, blood was discovered in one of the bathtubs.”

According to parents and teachers, the ordeal was related or linked to Satanism.

Gripped by fear, a number of students vacated the hostels, with just a few remaining due to bus fare challenges.

“Out of 80 resident students, only 28 remained at the school,” our source claimed.

School officials convened a meeting with students last weekend.

“The meeting was meant to warn whoever was behind the act to immediately stop it,” said one of the students.

Allegations of Satanism at schools have been on the increase in recent years, leading to protests by parents.

In May this year, a school in Chikomba District, Zinatsa High School, was shut down after hundreds of parents protested and withdrew their children over accusations that one of the teachers was allegedly practising Satanism.

This came after another nearby school, Chideme Secondary, was also experiencing the same problem, with some children’s skin said to be developing snake-like colours.

Late last year, several incidents were reported, including one at a Harare primary school in Kuwadzana high density suburb in which lessons were disrupted as anti-riot police failed to disperse the agitated parents.

It only took the intervention of local MP Nelson Chamisa to convince the parents to let their children continue with their learning.

The parents claimed that a Grade Four pupil’s body was changing into snake colours while four other pupils from the same class had developed tattoos which had caused the hysteria.

At yet another school, a headmistress was chased away by parents from the same neighbourhood on similar allegations.

This had been preceded by a similar incident in March where hundreds of people besieged Hatcliffe Primary School where two Grade Five pupils had reportedly developed canine teeth after being given rings and bracelets by their class teacher.

Earlier in the year, parents of a Nhowe Mission pupil withdrew their child from the school following allegations she had her throat mysteriously slashed. Daily News