Nowhere to hide as people turn to paternity tests

The late Paul Matavire was a wordsmith par excellence who could tackle contentious social issues in a humorous but informative way. In one of his songs, Gomba Harina Mwana the musician tackled the issue of child paternity in a very subtle way.

Back then, Zimbabwean men had no way of proving children's partenity, hence the term Gomba Harina Mwana.

Even when the child's similarities were too glaring to see, it was just rubbished as "Nhodzerwa."

"Mukadzi chete ndiye anoziva baba vemwana (Only the mother knows the real father of the child)," people would sigh resignedly.

"I only came to know that I was not the father of the child when my 'daughter' was being married. All along I struggled to look after her while the mother was secretly communicating with the real father," said Ishmael Gova of Glen Norah A.

Some women were also at the receiving end. Men would deny fathering children and got away with it.

However, with the evolution of technology, more men are turning to paternity tests as a solution.

With an increase in maintenance claims since Zimbabwe adopted the multi-currency regime, more men are contesting claims and demanding DNA tests.

In 2008, a Harare Magistrates' Court dealt with just 427 new maintenance claims, but the figures shot up after dollarisation to 2 174 in 2010 and 3 040 in 2011.

Court officials say, since January this year, they are dealing with between 40 and 50 fresh maintenance claims every day.

The celebrities have also joined the bandwagon.

The DNA paternity tests carried out by a South African private medical institution, Unistel Medical Laboratories revealed that popular sungura musician, Aleck Macheso, is the father of Alick Maximillian and Allexynn Maneesha.

Macheso had contested the paternity of the two children he sired with his estranged wife, Fortunate "Tafadzwa" Mapako.

The DNA paternity tests were carried out at National Blood Transfusion Services of Zimbabwe (NBTSZ) offices in Harare last month and samples were sent to Unistel Medical Laboratories, Cape Town, South Africa for further examination before the results were sent back to NBTSZ.

Speaking at a news conference in Harare to announce the results, Mapako's lawyer Gift Nyandoro said at last the truth has come out that his client is not of loose morals.

"We are grateful that results of DNA paternity tests have proved that Macheso is the real father of Alick and Allexynn. We want the nation to know that Mapako is not of loose morals as previously claimed by Macheso. He (Macheso) doubted the integrity of Mapako, but results have shown that she is not of loose morals," said Nyandoro.

"It was a deliberate ploy to denigrate the integrity of my client and we will not be surprised to hear Macheso claiming that her daughter (Sharon) who is about to wed, must undergo paternity tests to prove that she is his child, we are glad that at last the truth has come out," added Nyandoro.

Harare socialite and businessperson, known for his penchant for lavish parties, Genius Kadungure, has been looking after another man's child for the past 11 years.

The self-styled "king of bling" has been ignorant of the child's paternity as the mother, Doreen Mutukwa, kept milking him.

The matter only came to light when Doreen demanded an upward review of maintenance money to $1 500.

This compelled Genius to demand a paternity test.

The outcome on paternity tests on December 10 last year showed that Genius was not the father of the child he had been looking after for the past 11 years.

"Yes, I was duped into looking after a child I thought was mine for the past 11 years. It is heartbreaking.

"The woman blackmailed me into believing the child was mine and since I did not want any public scrutiny, I obliged," he said.

However, ordinary people are finding the paternity tests exorbitant.

"I doubt if the child is mine but I cannot raise $500 for paternity tests. The courts ordered me to pay $50, so I had to be contend with it," said an unidentified man who spoke to this reporter at Harare Civil courts.

All along the DNA tests were being done in South Africa since Zimbabwe had no lab facilities.

In 2011, magistrates referred 11 cases for DNA paternity tests to South Africa. Of the nine results announced in court, six of the men discovered they had not fathered the children, while three were confirmed as dads.

The country's first ever DNA testing centre was early this year registered with the Medical Laboratory and Clinic Scientists Council of Zimbabwe, bringing local solutions to paternity disputes and other civil and criminal challenges.

Although the African Institute of Biomedical Science and Technology (AIBST) is charging $500 to conclude investigating a case, indications are that the charges will come down as more such facilities are opened.

DNA tests can be done to establish the child's biological parents in maintenance cases, to establish a rapist's "footprint" in criminal investigations, identify bodies of accident victims, in murder investigations, tracing the family histories in chieftainship wrangles, and many other uses.

AIBST president and chief scientific officer, Collen Masimirembwa, said the development was a major milestone in the history and development of forensic science in Zimbabwe.

"In Zimbabwe, for a long time, forensic science had lagged behind using traditional and manual means like taking finger prints and using the magnifying glass for identification purposes," Masimirembwa said.

"For drug crimes, there were no machines. The police and health (officials) are also working towards buying the same machines that we use here and they have come several times to see how we operate."