A 37-YEAR-OLD man of Maloni Township has told the Livingstone Local Court that he doubts being the father of his 18-months-old baby because his wife has many male friends. This was in a case in which Douglas Liyowa, of house number 33, sued his wife Florence Mafumo, of the same address, for divorce. Liyowa told senior court magistrate Esau Daka that he wanted his 14-year-old marriage dissolved because his wife drinks a lot and fails to take care of the home and their children.

The court heard that Liyowa was charged K1,500 as lobola and paid K1,000. The couple has three children. “She doesn’t do any house chores and prefers hiring people to wash my clothes. She prefers being with her many male friends whom she drinks with. She doesn’t even cook for me,” he said. Liyowa said Mafumo does not welcome his relatives at their home. “I suspect that one of her male friends is the father of her lastborn child,” Liyowa said. Mafumo admitted that she drinks a lot because of the beatings she receives from her husband. “My husband does not give me money for up-keep. He insists on buying household essentials for home himself,” Mafumo said.

She said she reported their matrimonial problems to Liyowa’s brother. Mafumo denied having a boyfriend as the man Liyowa was claiming to be her lover was merely her drinking mate. “He beat me up over false accusations that I was having an affair with the other man, who is just a mere friend. He sued the man for adultery and lost the case,” she said. She said she has never been in a sexual relationship with the man Liyowa insists is the father of her third child and that even the DNA test could confirm her story.

Mafumo’s father Michael Mafumo Moyo, of DSS 90 in Dambwa, said the family was aware of the matrimonial problems in the couple’s marriage. He said efforts to counsel the couple have failed. He said DNA results from the samples which had earlier been sent to hospital would be respected by both parties. Passing judgment, the court granted divorce and ordered Liyowa to pay K500 balance for bride price. The court also revealed that the DNA tests proved that Liyowa is 99.9 percent the father of the child.