THE widow of the late national hero Jevan Maseko was reportedly shut out of the funeral proceedings for the former Matabeleland North Governor, as his relatives said their marriage had collapsed.
Report by Nqaba Matshazi
Alice Maseko (nee Ncube) was reportedly blocked from getting into the hearse that was carrying Maseko’s body and was also barred from sitting with dignitaries at a service held at Imbizo Barracks in Bulawayo.
Maseko says her name was also removed from the travelling party to the National Heroes Acre for the burial of the national hero.
“(Jevan) Maseko was legally married,” she said. “He was not a widower as has been reported.”
Alice said she and Maseko wedded at Pelandaba Seventh-Day Adventist Church on November 18, 2007 and they had not divorced.
She said reports that Maseko was a widower at the time of his death were false, as the former ambassador divorced his previous wife, who is now late.
According to a copy of the marriage certificate, seen by NewsDay, when Maseko and Alice tied the knot, he was a divorcee and she was listed as a divorcee.
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The wedding was solemnised by a Pastor F Mhlophe.
Alice confirmed that all was not rosy between the two, as they had fought much previously, but this did not mean they were divorced.
“We fought, he then shut me out,” she said. “I then went back to my children and he went to his previous wife’s house, which now belongs to the children.”
Alice says at about that time, she fell ill and she went to the United Kingdom, where she sought medical attention.
She said her sister took charge of Maseko and even appealed to the army to help with his medication, as the family had run out of money.
“His relatives now say I was dumped and they refuse to acknowledge me as the surviving spouse,” she said. “The fighting is tense. I am not aware that our marriage was ever dissolved.”
Maseko’s son Gugulethu confirmed that they deliberately left out their stepmother during the funeral.
“There is no need to be worried about that, she was left out because of some reasons I cannot tell you right now,” he said.
“I need to talk to the lawyers first, who will give me a go-ahead before I can say anything to you.”
Maseko died last Monday and was buried at the National Heroes Acre on Sunday.
