Travel Reference
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an elder to verify it really was God. He claims Mwasapila heard God's voice for nearly 20
years before acting on the instructions, even writing down the date each time he heard the
voice. His point seems to be Mwasapila has done his due diligence. Frederick says, “Now,
forget about that. After hearing all of this, what is your comment, sir? Do you believe people
can be cured through voices or this medicine?”
Surrounded by the faithful, my skepticism feels like a dirty secret. Struggling to form a
polite answer, I tell Frederick that while I have heard of many people who seem to be doing
muchbetterwithminorcomplaintsorevendiabetes,Iamstilltryingtofindpeoplewhohave
hadHIVwhocouldtellmedirectlywhathappenedtothem.“Idonotknowwhattobelieve,”
I say. “I think if I were suffering I would take the medicine though.”
Frederick tells me to drink a cup of the medicine right now, and I say that I will, even
though I am not suffering. Frederick says that we all have many unknown problems with our
body and I may be cured without knowing it. Then he tells me to swallow the entire dose;
don't try to keep a small amount in my mouth to take back to a laboratory.
Theaudienceisover,andIthankMwasapila,whojustnodsandshakesmyhand.Frederick
walks me down the hill to the road, where plastic cups of Mwasapila's cure sit on a card
table. A small crowd follows to watch the action. He presses a cup into my hand. The liquid
is warm and slightly bitter, with a subtle and distinctive flavor, like anise or ginseng.
Later,IspeakwithMadameKasheoverthephone,and,despitethebadconnection,itsounds
like she has found a patient for me to talk with. Jotham spends about two hours eating lunch
and chatting with Frederick and a couple of policemen, while I wait impatiently in the car.
Much later, when I read the translation of my audience with Mwasapila, I will realize
Jotham blatantly mistranslated a small part of the conversation. When Jotham asked about
his first patient, the woman he treated for HIV in 2009, Mwasapila actually responded that
she lived in Samunge and might be available to talk. This is most likely the same woman Pat
Pattentoldmeabout,thewomanwhofamouslytestedHIVnegativebut,accordingtoPatten,
had never been HIV positive. Jotham knows full well I am trying to find people who have
taken Mwasapila's cure for HIV, but he says nothing as we drive toward Wasso, away from
Babu's most famous patient.
InWasso,Jotham introduces me tothe district medical officer,andIinterview himoutside
of a loud bar while PA speakers blare global hip-hop in the background. His answers are
noncommittal. When I ask him if there's evidence that Mwasapila's cure works, he says that
manydiabeticshavedemonstrablybetterbloodsugarlevelsafterdrinkingtheliquid.Hesays
he knows of no cases of HIV patients testing negative after taking the cure, but he also says
some have shown small improvements in their CD4 counts. “The Ministry of Health is con-
ducting a study about this now, and you should really go to them for answers.” I ask him if
he can help me speak to HIV patients who went to Mwasapila, and he promises to make in-
