Fungai Marange (36) of Marange told Mutare magistrate, Mr
Xavier Chipato, that his estranged wife Molline Mufudza was applying for
maintenance as a way of fixing him after he kicked her out.
The couple appeared in court last week on Thursday.
Mufudza was applying for $15 000 maintenance for the upkeep
of her four children who are all below the age of five.
Marange said according to his religious doctrine, it is his
three wives’ duty to provide for him and their eight children as he is the head
of the family.
His fallout with Mufudza came after she failed to respect
and uphold those beliefs.
He said Mufudza knows that he is unemployed and that his
two other wives will foot the maintenance bill as they are the ones who also
take care of him.
“All my three wives know that it is their duty to take care
of the family. They do gardening together and we sell the vegetables and fresh
maize to take care of the family.
“Mufudza is stubborn. She knows that I am uneducated and
therefore cannot be employed anywhere, but she insists that I should take care
of her,” he said.
Marange said he sent her packing after realising that she
no longer respected the church’s doctrine by wearing ‘unacceptable’ dresses.
“She became wayward when she realised that I could not
secure a job. She started putting on short dresses like the one she is wearing
today. It is totally unacceptable in our church. She even stopped attending
church services. Look at her, she does not even have a headscarf on her head,”
he said.
Marange said the amount Mufudza was asking for was
exorbitant as he needs six months to raise it.
He offered to pay US$15 every month for the four children’s
upkeep.
Mufudza insisted that since Marange knew his financial
position, he should not have married a lot of wives and sired many children.
“This man is a builder, but he has not been bringing any
money home. Is it fair that a mother looks after the father and the children? I
felt that it was not fair and raised the issue with him. He sent me packing.
“He should take care of his children. Why would he have all
these children when he knows that he cannot look after them?” charged Mufudza.
Marange denied being a builder. He said he is his late
brother’s assistant.
“She knows that it is our church’s doctrine that families
should have as many children as possible. After all, she is the one with four
children who are all under the age of five. My other two wives have two
children each,” said a visibly incensed Marange.
Mr Chipato ordered Marange to pay US$15 monthly maintenance
for his four minor children and provide for their education as soon as they
reach school-going age. Manica Post
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