A TWELVE year old marriage bond has been torn apart as Matero local court put the final nail to the coffin of a once blossoming love story whose lights were permanently load shedded.
The reason for the split was ignited four years ago when 37 year old Kelvin Chomba asked his 30 year old wife, Grace Nalwinga to go back to the village as he faced hardships and couldn’t properly fend for his three children.
Understanding the situation, Nalwinga went only for her husband to ghost her all these years as she returned, finding him in the arms of another woman.
“My husband told me he was struggling financially,” Nalwinga stated. “He asked me to return to our village with the children while he looked for work in Lusaka.”
Chomba reportedly promised to follow his family as soon as he secured a job.
Nalwinga agreed and departed for their rural home in Chinsali with their three children on a bus.
But as the bus departed so did the memory of having a family depart from Chomba’s brain and their thread of love snapped.
Months turned into a lonely silence as things in the village became worse for young mother.
“After months of living in the village, my husband never called me, I tried calling him, but he blocked my number. He never supported my children, so we depended on food from my parents. I then decided that I just returned back to Lusaka and look for him myself.
When Nalwinga came back to Lusaka she could not find him as he had relocated and Chomba’s relatives wouldn’t tell her where he was.
“I only discovered that he was married a few months ago after finding out were he was staying and I immediately ran to court to file for divorce because I have raised our four children alone for four years,” added Nalwinga.
Giving his side of the story, Chomba offered a contrasting account, denying marital status with Nalwinga after her departure for Chinsali.
Chomba claimed the marriage ended fours ago at Intercity Bus terminus when she returned to the village.
He said Nalwinga even took too long to take him to court for a divorce.
“She was my wife but the biggest problem we had was sex. She used to sleep in the sitting room while I slept in the bedroom.”
“And each time I leave her money for relish, she would keep part of it, and once its enough to buy a ticket to Chinsali, she would leave and there she would stay for even eight months,” Chomba explained.
So the moment Nalwinga stepped into that Power Tools bus, it meant freedom for Chomba.
” I decided that she goes there forever,” Chomba told court while stressing that he was tired of begging for her return everytime she went.
Magistrate Lewis Mumba granted the divorce, citing a broken marital bond and ordered Chomba to compensate Nalwinga with 10,000.
Nalwinga was awarded custody of the youngest child and K500 monthly child support while two older children were given to Chomba.
“If he really loved you and meant to be with you, this man would have returned back but instead, he opted to marry another woman which means his love for you ended a long time ago,” remarked Magistrate Mumba.
By Buumba Mwitumwa
Kalemba May 7, 2024
