(TIMES OF ZAMBIA ) A THIRTY-YEAR-OLD woman of Chunga Township has lost custody of her two children because she spends most of her time attending church meetings leaving them unattended to.
This is in a case in which Sam Banda, 34, of Choma sued Lindah Musungu of Chunga, 30, seeking custody of their three children.
Facts before the court were that Banda and Musangu were married for 11 years before they divorced in February this year.
Banda told the court that Musangu spent most of her time at church leaving the children in the care of their first-born who is only 11 years old.
The youngest was only two years old.
“I want to take my children so that I can take proper care of them and I want Musangu to continue attending her church meetings freely without any disturbance,” he said.
Banda also told the court that sometimes his former wife spent nights at church leaving the children all by themselves.
“My 11-year-old daughter complains to me that when her mother comes back from church at night she usually sends her to go and buy things,” he said.
Banda said his daughter also told him that Musangu abused her by sending her to fetch water in a 20-litre container.
In her defence, Musangu denied ever sending her 11-year-old daughter to fetch water using a 20-litre container.
She said it was also not true that she spends nights at church and did not take good care of the children.
Musangu told the court that Banda did not support the children since the two divorced three months ago.
She said Banda did not care about the children and her because just in three months he got married to another woman.
“I know that he can’t manage to take care of the children because right now when they fall ill he does not support them,” Musangu said.
“And why should another woman be the one to take care of my children when I am still alive and able to provide for them?”
But in passing judgment, local court magistrates Dennis Mpundu and Shallon Sichone gave the custody of the two children to Banda on grounds that Musangu was negligent and that she spent most of her time at church.
The magistrates also said the two-year-old baby would remain with the mother as she was still young and needed her mother’s care.
The court warned Musangu that she risked losing even the two-year-old if she continued neglecting the child.
Get church clearance, divorce seeking couple told
By MUNAMBEZA MUWANEI
THE Ndola main local court has instructed a couple of Lubuto Township seeking divorce to get clearance from the Roman Catholic Church where they exchanged their marriage vows 24 years ago.
This was in a matter in which Baron Phiri sued his wife Getrude Kamanga Phiri for divorce following continued misunderstandings in their marriage.
But the court told the couple to first seek guidance from their church before the matter could proceed in court.
Ndola main local court principal presiding magistrate Sarah Bwalya, who was sitting with senior principal resident magistrate Agness Mulenga and senior local court magistrate Kaala Nyambe, said the matter would only proceed upon hearing from the church.
“In dissolving the Christian marriage, there is a procedure. So, you need to go to church where you got married,” she said.
But the plaintiff said even if there was a procedure in dissolving the marriage, his wife was a problem.
He said his wife ran a bar and had no time for his family, which made the marriage difficult even if they were to be reconciled by the church.
He accused his wife of leaving the bedroom every time they differed in the marriage.
The court advised the defendant to come up with a timetable which would enable her to have time for her family.
“As a business executive and a woman with a family, you need to employ workers who would take charge whenever you are out. You need to create time for your family,” magistrate Bwalya said.
The matter has since been adjourned June 10, 2013.
Man charged for eloping with lover
By SARAH TEMBO –
A 24-YEAR-OLD man of John Laing Township has been ordered to pay KR5,000 to his mother-in-law for eloping with her daughter in 2011.
This is in a case in which Barbra Kinta, 43, sued Jonathan Mwale for failure to pay the money he was charged when he eloped with Kinta’s daughter.
Facts before the court were that in 2011 on an unknown date, Mwale eloped with Kinta’s daughter who spent a night at his house.
Kinta had earlier told the court that in 2011 on an unknown date, she discovered that her daughter was missing but after making enquiries she was told that his daughter had eloped with Mwale.
“I later called his family and we agreed that the two will get married and KR5,000 was charged as lobola but Mwale has not paid anything up to now,” she said.
Kinta told the court that the K3,000 lobola Mwale wanted to pay was just too little since his daughter had since died.
In his defence, Mwale told the court that he did not refuse to pay his mother-in-law the money she demanded.
“The only money that I know is KR3,000. I agree that KR5,000 was charged as lobola but after some negotiations between the two families the amount was reduced to KR3,000.”
Mwale also refuted claims by his mother-in-law that he eloped with her daughter.
He told the court that it was Kinta who chased her daughter from home after she spent a night at his house.
In passing judgment, local court magistrate Morgan Kayunika told Mwale that what he did was wrong and moraly unaceptable because if he trully loved Kinta’s daughter, he would have followed the correct procedure.
Mr Kayunika ordered Mwale to pay KR5,000 to his mother-in-law in K200 monthly installments effective May 30, 2013.
