Senior Italian politician Roberto Calderoli who
sparked outrage when he compared Italy's first black
minister, Congolese-born Cécile Kyenge to an
orang-utan (a specie of apes), claims he is under
siege from vengeful African spirits.
He is considering asking the Pope to recommend an
exorcist to fight off the curse.
When Calderoli made the racist statement, he issued
an apology and refused to resign. In November, he
took legal advice after being charged with
defamation aggravated by racial discrimination.
The trial, according to The Independent, is ongoing.
Calderoli now believes that Kyenge's father, who is a
tribal leader, has put an African curse – "macumba"
on him as punishment for the remark.
Since his "orang-utan" comment, he has had six
surgical interventions, the death of his mother,
fractured bones and just a week ago, he discovered a
6ft snake in the kitchen of his house.
Last year, Oggi Magazine filmed Kyenge's 75-year-
old father Clement Kikoko Kyenge performing a
ceremony in the village of Katanga in Democratic
Republic of Congo. Clement allegedly prayed to God
for the racist politician to repent.
Calderoli's photo was placed on an enclosed termite
mound during the traditional ceremony.
"The photos and the video were unsettling. They put
a picture of me in the middle of a termite mound.
That is not a friendly message," said Calderoli to
Oggi mag when he saw the video.
He said that after the video, he suffered the health
scares and that two friends gave him a lucky charm
supposed to possess mystical healing powers but
"two days later, it broke in two by itself. A wizard has
told me that there are terrible forces acting against
me".
Mr Kyenge later spoke to Oggi about Calderoli's
recent incidents.
He replied, "A snake in the house is not a good sign
and I'm not sure Calderoli did well to kill it. If when
he apologised to Cécile he was sincere, he can feel
comfortable. If, however, those excuses were
insincere, the ancestors might become angry."
Photo Credit: The Independent UK
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