Aniva said he has had sex with 104 women, but the actual number is likely higher..
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In a BBC interview broadcast last week, Aniva confessed to being infected with HIV and sleeping with virgin girls without using protection.
The issue has polarised and divided Malawians in social media as some say there are many rich men out there who are luring very young girls into sex for money; others are questioning why Mutharika is pouncing on those who are fulfilling cultural obligations whilst shielding cabinet ministers who plundered the billions of Kwacha through the infamous cashgate.
He said Mr Aniva, nicknamed “hyena” for his role in the initiation, would be prosecuted for violating children’s rights.
And he has ordered an inquiry into the role of parents, saying “harmful cultural and traditional practices can not be accepted”.
“These horrific practices although done by a few also tarnish the image of the whole nation of Malawi internationally and bring shame to us all”.
Aniva, who is in his mid-forties is a man that in Malawian culture is known as a “hyena”, which is a man that is paid to have sex with young girls as a form of ritual cleansing.
He is paid to have sex with women whose husbands have just died, women who have just received abortions and teenage girls after their first menstruation to mark their passage into adulthood.
The ritual is believed to train girls to become good wives and to protect them from disease or misfortune that could fall on their families or their village. However, when asked if he would let his 2-year-old daughter to undergo the custom, Aniva told the BBC “Not my daughter”.
Chief Malemia said he had ordered a stop to the malpractice long ago and was surprised that some people were practising it underground.
Mutharika has now ordered the police to immediately arrest Aniva and to investigate all men and parents who are involved in this sexual abuse, saying that harmful cultural practices can not be tolerated in Malawi.
A police spokesperson said he was confident they would be caught soon.
“Out of the many women he had sex with, majority were under-aged children”, Kachama said.
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In the BBC feature, Aniva, who is in his 40s but would not reveal his exact age, discussed his life as a child sex worker. The country outlaws sex with anyone aged under 16.
