The ManicaPost
Tendai Gukutikwa Weekender Correspondent
A MUTARE woman dumped her boyfriend for refusing to pay her lobola after years of cohabiting.
The matter was revealed on Monday before Mutare magistrate, Mr Lazarus Murendo, when Tendai Machaya was applying for a protection order against her former live-in boyfriend, Austin Maroso.
A few months back, Maroso caught Machaya red-handed with another lover.
She claims that she had already moved on with her life as Maroso had not paid any bride price for her.
She also told the court that Maroso had assaulted her, hence her protection order application.
“He wanted to kill me and I cannot take it anymore. He now stalks me and each time he sees me, he assaults me. I am now his punching bag and I beg that he be stopped from stalking me,” she said.
“We were just lovers, I was never his wife. I wonder why he is telling this court that I was his wife. ln which law book does it say that if we cohabit I automatically become his wife? He never paid anything for me, not even five cents. We were just cohabiting,” she said..
Maroso told the court that being reminded on a daily basis that he had not paid any lobola pushed him to assault Machaya.
“The statement that I never paid even a five cent coin to her parents as bride price angered me,” said Maroso.
“Well, did you pay anything?” asked Mr Murendo, thereby drawing laughter from the gallery.
“I wanted to. I do not want to lie, I wanted to pay lobola for her, but she discouraged me so much when she assaulted my mother. I cannot marry someone who assaults my mother.
“That is when I caught her red-handed with another man. She moved out after telling me that I had no right to tell her what to do as I had not paid anything to her parents,” he said.
Mr Murendo, however, castigated Maroso and told him that he had no right to assault anyone regardless of the circumstances.
A protection order which will be valid for five years was granted to Machaya.
