WHILE Lusaka has its reputation of having fast depleting marriages like the bundles from the red network, a 23 year old woman from Lusaka’s Garden Compound rushed to the local court to prevent herself from being part of the statistics.
Like a pentecostal prayer warrior casting out a demon, Faidess Mwale was allegedly told to “pack and go,” by her 27 year old husband who had blamed her for using her pregnancy to tie him down into marriage.
The motive gets thicker, it is reported that Josias Kamwanga also blamed the wife for bearing a disabled child which he had to fend for in their three years union.
“He tells me that I am withholding his life and ruined it by giving him a disabled child.”
“He (Kamwanga) said that by this time, he would have been out of the country doing better with his life, but that changed because of me. instead, he is held back to taking care of our sick child,” Mwale emotionally told Matero Local Court.
Mwale further revealed in court that Kamwanga also neglected his responsibilities as a husband, leaving her and their child to fend for themselves and rely on her relatives most of the time.
“We had a dispute last time and his mother told him that he should have thought wise when choosing a tribe to marry,” she narrated.
“And then he chased me from our home” she added.
Kamwanga defended himself, stating that the couple lived peacefully until Mwale began disrespecting him for returning home late.
“She calls me a child of a dog each time I return home late and drunk from a drink up. She refuses to offer me food and assumes I was with prostitutes.”
“All I just want is for her to begin to respect me again,” he said
Magistrate Lewis Mumba rebuked Kamwanga for blaming his wife for their child’s disability and neglecting his family.
He counseled the couple on the importance of communication, respect, and shared responsibility within a marriage..
“Most of the times, we are the ones that make marriages to fail because they are rules in a home and if you haven’t yet reached the age to follow those rules, then continue playing around.”
“You cannot be sleeping out and expect your wife to be happy, also, it is wrong for you to blame your wife for having a physically challenged child, because it is God above who gives children not your wife,” said Magistrate Mumba.
The couple ultimately agreed to reconcile, and Magistrate Mumba advised them to follow the principles of a healthy marriage.
By Buumba Mwitumwa
Kalemba May 8, 2024
