Prophet Magaya is celebrating his birthday today in prison, turns 42

PROPHET Walter Magaya turned 42 yesterday and marked his birthday while trapped in remand prison in a fitting chapter of the tale of a tough week for him and his ministry.

He was arrested on Saturday morning, while praying and fasting at his prayer mountain in Waterfalls, during a raid by 30-armed police officers.

Magaya, who is facing five counts of rape and 13 counts of fraud involving some residential stands, has been in custody since he was arrested in the early hours of Saturday.

Scores of PHD members, and his relatives, converged at Harare Remand Prison yesterday where they showered Magaya with messages of hope as they celebrated his birthday.

Some of the visitors arrived in luxurious vehicles, filling the Harare Remand Prison car park, as they took turns to see the prophet.

Many could be seen praying for his release from remand prison.

“Church members and relatives have been visiting Prophet Magaya since morning,” one of the PHD Ministries members told H-Metro.

“Some were told that they had to allow him to rest.

“We are here to comfort him and celebrate his special day.”

His wife Tendai, who was also arrested in that early morning raid and was granted bail this week, later hosted some of the PHD members who visited Magaya at remand prison.

She was in the company of her son, Walter Junior, who has in recent weeks been leading the church services while his father was fasting and praying at the prayer mountain.

Musician Seh Calaz described Magaya as a “true servant of God,” in a post celebrating the prophet’s birthday.

“Today, we celebrate the life of a true servant of God – a man whose wisdom, humility and unshakable faith have transformed countless lives,” he posted on his social media handles.

“Prophet, you are not just a leader but a father, mentor and inspiration to many across Zimbabwe and beyond.”

Yesterday’s events, though, are in sharp contrast to the colourful birthday bashes which Magaya has hosted in recent years.

In 2019, a jacket, which was tailor-made specifically for his birthday bash, was auctioned for US$12,000.

He donated the entire amount to a group of women to buy sanitary wear.

“One of my ministry’s members based in Nigeria is the one who took her time to hand-make it and I did not want to let it go but because of the amount pledged, I accept and donate the money to Women of Valour to buy their sanitary wear,” said Magaya, amid the celebrations.

Magaya will miss his ministry’s biggest event this year, the Night of Turnaround, which gets underway in Waterfalls this evening.

There had been fears that the event would be cancelled in the wake of the legal woes which Magaya has been battling all week.

However, senior members at PHD told H-Metro that the event will go ahead as scheduled.

A number of foreign delegates have been arriving for the event since the beginning of the week.

Those who arrived early this week have also been following the events, from their ringside seats, as their leader battled his legal woes.

Some of them were also in court.