Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s plan to wed Elizabeth Mazvita Guma nee Macheka crumbled at the 11th hour yesterday after Harare provincial magistrate Munamato Mutevedzi cancelled the marriage licence issued to the couple on August 27.
Report by Charles Laiton The magistrate said he was convinced that former Tsvangirai’s lover Locadia Karimatsenga’s objection to the nuptials was an impediment to the marriage.
“I have already explained that it is criminal for one to enter into or purports to enter into a monogamous marriage when one is in an unregistered customary law marriage with another person. This is what Tsvangirai seeks to do in this case,” Mutevedzi said.
“If his intended marriage to Guma proceeds, it is potentially bigamous . . . I cannot sanction the wedding when it is clear to me that the parties to that marriage may be committing an offence.
“There is need for Tsvangirai to sweep clean these issues before seeking marriage in holy matrimony.”
In an attempt to convince the court he never married Karimatsenga, Tsvangirai, through his lawyer Advocate Thabani Mpofu, submitted an affidavit denying ever sending anyone to ask for Karimatsenga’s hand in marriage.
“There are startling revelations in that statement, firstly Tsvangirai disowns his emissaries and alleges that they did what he had not mandated them to do,” the magistrate said.
“In other words he alleges that they went and asked Karimatsenga’s hand in marriage without his consent.”
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Tsvangirai also attempted to divorce Karimatsenga by presenting $1 as a token of divorce (gupuro) in line with African tradition but the court declined to accept.
“Gupuro is not channelled through the magistrate or marriage officer. “There are recognised customary ways of doing it which must be followed,” Mutevedzi said.
“In the court’s view this was an acceptance that it could not be denied that indeed this union existed. I accept that the offering of a token of divorce is how a woman is divorced under this regime but there is everything wrong with how Tsvangirai intended to do this.
“By virtue of the powers I have in terms of Section 19(3) of the Marriage Act (Chapter 5:11) I shall as I hereby do cancel the marriage licence I gave to Tsvangirai and Guma.”
After the proceedings Karimatsenga’s lawyer Everson Samkange hailed the ruling saying the law now recognised the rights of African women.
“This is the happiest day of my life. It really shows that our laws now recognise the rights of African women who for long have cried out for justice,” he said.
During the hearing, the magistrate had the chance to watch a video of the alleged marriage ceremony.
“In that video recording, it was clear that contrary to the unsubstantiated assertion by Tsvangirai that he had only paid damages for impregnating Karimatsenga out of wedlock, the ceremony was a payment of lobola which culminated in Tsvangirai’s emissaries asking for their in-laws’ blessing to have a white wedding,” the magistrate said.
“The tabulated items on the list of lobola tally exactly with items mentioned in the video recording.
“On a balance of probabilities, the scale tips in the direction that for all intents and purposes this was a marriage between Tsvangirai and Karimatsenga.”
However, the other application by a South African woman Nosipho Regina Shilubane who was also seeking to stop the wedding was dismissed by the court.
Tsvangirai’s lawyers have appealed against the ruling at the High Court.
