Adultery exposed In court

A MAINTENANCE claim by a city woman at the Harare civil court exposed an illicit affair that she had with another man.

Robert Chirangwa, through his lawyer, opened up in court that he is a responsible father but he stopped fending for the minor child upon realising that his former wife was having an extra-marital affair.

"My client is not an irresponsible father; he ceased fending for the minor child in question after the applicant committed adultery.

She then decided to move away from their matrimonial home and she indicated that my client was not welcome to her new place of residence.

"The applicant and the respondent are civil servants and the former earns more than the latter and both should contribute towards the upkeep of the minor child in question," she said.

Responding to the claims Melody Mukurakudya could neither confirm nor deny that she had had an adulterous affair but told the court that she is a student at Bindura State University and she cannot afford to fend for their child alone.

"Your Worship this man is the father of our child and should pay US$200 maintenance for the upkeep of our child, I am a student and I need a child minder to look after our child when I am at college.

"The remainder of the US$200 maintenance will cover my rentals, food and medical expenses for our child," she said.

She added: "He claims that we were married but he did not pay lobola to my parents, we were cohabiting Your Worship I was not married to him."

Chirangwas lawyer told the court that Mukurakudya is no longer married to Chirangwa and therefore had no right to claim rentals from him.

"The two are divorced and my client has no obligation whatsoever to pay rentals for the applicant," she said.

Magistrate Trevor Nyatsanza deferred his ruling to today.