A LOCAL married church bishop is under fire for impregnating one of his congregants and allegedly trying to terminate the pregnancy on four different occasions.
Bishop Nathan Tafadzwa Gwenyaya of Rock Foundation
Tabernacle also stands accused of neglecting his 10 months old son. The married
father of three who stays in Penhalonga with his family found Rock Foundation
Tabernacle in 2018.
Bishop Gwenyaya and his child’s mother, Ms Lince Siiwa
(25)’s case had since spilled into court, with the latter demanding $25 000
monthly maintenance from the man of cloth.
However, the parties on Wednesday had an out of court
settlement of $11 000 monthly maintenance. Mrs Netsai Nyamwanza represented Ms
Siiwa while Mr Stephen Chikamhi represented Bishop Gwenyaya.
Mutare magistrate, Mr Lazarus Musendo, endorsed the $11 000
maintenance when the parties later appeared before him.
In an unsolicited interview with The Manica Post, Ms Siiwa,
said upon realising that he had impregnated her, Bishop Gwenyaya engaged and
paid some people to facilitate the termination of her pregnancy on four
different occasions.
Ms Siiwa said she almost died during one of the abortion
attempts. Upon realising that his mission to abort the pregnancy had failed,
Bishop Gwenyaya is alleged to have ordered Ms Siiwa to lie to her family that
she had been raped by unknown assailants.
Ms Siiwa followed the Bishop’s script and lied to her
mother and sisters. A police report was made but no one was arrested as there
were no suspects.
Narrating how she became intimate with Bishop Gwenyaya, Ms
Siiwa said the man of cloth sexually abused her.
“He came to collect me from our place on the pretext that
we would visit other congregants. He drove me to Vumba, where he forcibly
kissed and hugged me. He forced himself on me and a few weeks later I realised
that I was pregnant.
“He engaged his colleague to abort the pregnancy but it
failed. After a week, he sent the guy again and I almost died. It happened on
four different occasions.
‘‘On the last attempt, the hired guy brought another person
whom he said was an expert, but nothing worked. I had to tell my two elder
sisters about my ordeal,” said Ms Siiwa.
She said when she delivered her baby, her elder sisters
forced Bishop Gwenyaya to meet the hospital bills. However, Bishop Gwenyaya
allegedly stopped communicating with Ms Siiwa and her family.
“He also blocked my mother’s contacts when she told him
that they were taking the issue to the police. This was after she had heard
that Bishop Gwenyaya had also tried to molest my younger sister,” said Ms
Siiwa.
One of Ms Siiwa’s sisters – Mrs Lynn Magume – is married to
Pastor Jeremiah Magume, who was also a member of Bishop Gwenyaya’s church.
Mrs Magume said they left the church after realising that
their leader had impregnated her sister.
“My husband resigned from Rock Foundation Tabernacle after
realising that Bishop Gwenyaya was a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” said Mrs
Magume. Ms Siiwa’s mother, Mrs Constance Siiwa, said she trusted Bishop Gwenyaya
with her daughters.
“He is good at preaching the gospel and you would not
suspect his heartlessness. I could hardly believe my ears when Lince told me
that Gwenyaya was the father of her child. Reality later dawned on me because
when I joined Bishop Gwenyaya’s church someone once warned me that he is a
womaniser,” said Mrs Siiwa.
When The Manica Post contacted Bishop Gwenyaya for a
comment, he referred all questions to his lawyer, Mr Chikamhi. Mr Chikamhi
accused Pastor Magume of trying to blackmail Bishop Gwenyanya through Ms Siiwa.
“When all this happened, Magume approached my client and
tried to blackmail him. He told him to relinquish his position as a Bishop and
quietly hand over the church reigns to him or risk being humiliated. When my
client refused, Magume started a new church, Voice of Prayer, in Fern Valley.
“About the baby, my client was never told that Lince had
his child. They never approached him to contribute towards the upkeep of the
child. They rushed to court and the media. He got to know of this baby’s
existence through court summons,” said Mr Chikamhi. Manica Post
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