Blood is thicker than water!
Jairos Saunyama
This is an apt description of how the sour relationship within the Somanje family has been solved by the current ill-health of Daiton Somanje who was admitted on Thursday at Parirenyatwa Hospital suffering from meningitis. The feud between the Tsaona hitmaker, his brother Josphat and eldest son Faheem was made public, and once vowed never to set their feet at each other’s funeral.
The tension between the brothers saw the split of the famous sungura ensemble Pengaudzoke, arguably one of the most successful groups to emerge from rural Zimbabwe.
Following the intense fight with Josphat, Daiton was embroiled in yet a bitter row with his son Faheem accusing him of ‘siding with his enemies’ before publicly disowning him.
Faheem was also accused of stealing instruments from his father, and the tension was made worse when Daiton abandoned his Marondera family before cohabitating with a mistress in Dzivarasekwa.
It is however very clear that the family feud is now a thing of the past as all parties is standing by Daiton at this critical time.
Upon admission to hospital, Daiton had a number of shows lined up in Harare but his son Faheem had to stand in for him, symbolizing a show of unity and love, a close family member said in an interview.
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“Faheem is in Harare right now; his father was admitted while he had a couple of shows lined up in Harare. So Faheem had to take over since some of the shows had been paid for,” the family member said.
Daiton’s manager Shephered Chinyani yesterday confirmed that Faheem led Pengaudzoke during the weekend. “The shows went on and Faheem led the boys in Rugare and Highfields where we held the shows. Daiton is still in hospital but recovering well,” his manager said.
Both Josphat and Faheem were not picking their mobiles when NewsDay tried to contact them. But Josphat was quoted in a local tabloid saying that he is aware of his brother’s fate, and that he would soon travel to Harare from Marondera.
The Haulume hitmaker has expressed great concern about his brother’s health.
Daiton and Josphat’s personal life drove them into abyss which also destroyed their musical career. Their music has since become a thing of past, and almost forgotten. Their current dire situation has become talk of the town, as they are both struggling to make ends meet.
Josphat left Daiton and formed Somanje Stars, and released the title track This Time which put him back on the map. Daiton remained with Pengaudzoke but failed to live up to fans expectations. Both musicians have since ventured into gospel music to revive their fortunes.
