Zimbabweans angered by Our Perfect Wedding 'gold digger' episode

Mzansi Magic (DStv channel 161) wedding reality show, Our Perfect Wedding (OPW), is turning out to be Mzansi's most controversial reality show, even getting more dramatic than most SABC soapies.

The most recent OPW episode aired last Sunday riled a lot of viewers, especially Zimbabweans, after it emerged that the groom's family and friends had snubbed him after they labelled the bride - a Zimbabwean, a gold digger.

The wedding was the first interracial wedding on OPW with Martin, 56, marrying his long time love Tafadzwa, 34. The couple met at the bar Tafadzwa worked at and it took some time before she could fall in love.

For Martin on the other hand, it was that first-sight type of attraction.

"I got a message from God that this was the one for me," said Martin.

Now, Martin had not been in a relationship since 1978 so finding love with Tafadzwa was special on another level for him.

"I'm kind of like his first," she said.

Before Tafadzwa, Martin was a dishevelled man who didn't care much for himself but after he found his 'most loving wife', he has sworn he will never go back to that life.

The couple said they had faced many obstacles during the course of their relationship, but nothing would stop them from getting married.

"I'm not gonna take any nonsense from anyone about this relationship," said Martin.

Martin's only family - his brother - basically shut him out of his life when he started dating Tafadzwa. According to him (the brother) and a few other people, Tafadzwa was a gold digger. The brother had also frozen Martin's funds to try and prevent him from marrying his lady.

This is what riled many viewers who were moved as the groom - Martin cut a lonely figure at the wedding ceremony, even as he was dressing.

But after the uproar, one of Martin's brothers, Jeremy Milani has stepped forward to protest the 'unfair' criticism.

"I moved from South Africa in 1999. Martin took care of our parents but they passed away many years ago. I helped him financially every time he was in debt and had no money. For the past 15 years, I was the one that was there for him, not this gold digging woman he now calls his wife.

"I flew back to South Africa in October 2015 to meet with him and surprise him. I was concerned about his well-being because he's never had a girlfriend," Milani said. Milani alleges that Martin's wife is a gold digger who is after his brother's retirement funds which are now in the region of millions.

"My brother met this woman when he went to put money on horses. This woman lived in a room somewhere close to his house. She had very little money and was struggling financially.

"Martin's biggest mistake was telling her he went on early retirement and he now had over R1.5 million invested for his retirement. She suddenly had a huge interest in dating him."

Milani also expressed deep concern at how 'hurriedly' the marriage was arranged.

And when Milani spoke to Tafadzwa, she 'claimed' that she also had money.

"I told her she's a gold digger because she had no money before she met him, but because he lacked attention, she gave him attention and 'love' and because he's so gullible, he fell for her b*** s*** and lies."

Seeming to be a bitter brother, Milani said it was disheartening how "Martin couldn't even help his own niece to lend her some money for her baby, but yet he could spend thousands of rands on a woman who claims to love him?"

He labelled Tafadzwa a scam artiste who is only interested in inheriting Martin's riches.

Fearing to be labelled a racist because of his reaction, Milani made it clear that he had plenty of black friends.

"Just for the record, I'm not racist. I've many black and Asian friends in Canada."