Traditional circumcision school surgeon Vho-Maine Tshifhiwa Mugwedi negated the argument that sending boys to traditional circumcision schools places their lives at risk. He stated that he had circumcised more than 2,700 initiates at Tombogede, in Tshifudi village, over the years without any health concerns.
Speaking to Limpopo Mirror at the circumcision school on Thursday, 13 July, Mugwedi pointed to the more than a thousand initiates there, chatting and interacting with each other on the eastern side of the school. "You can see for yourself how healthy and happy they are. Those with the Western mentality of doing things will always talk negatively about traditional circumcision schools, but we are not bothered by doomsayers," he said.
On Friday, 14 July, traditional school entertainers (madaganana) took centre stage at dzikhareni (where the ladies bring food for the initiates) and dished out their best performances to the delight of everyone present. One of the entertainers had the crowd on their toes when he started tumbling and somersaulting like a martial artist while carrying a container of water - without spilling a drop.
As tradition demands, more than 300 traditional circumcision school overseers marched from the school to dzikhareni without shirts, singing the traditional circumcision-school anthem and collecting the food brought by the girls.
A well-known traditional healer from Tshaulu village, Vho-Maine Lutendo Masindi, said he had never seen a traditional school with so many boys. "This is an indication that our forefathers are leading us in the right cultural direction," he said.
As all traditional circumcision schools were officially closed on Friday, all the boys graduated on Saturday morning (15th) at their respective home villages.