Soured relationship takes the two love birds to court

Soured relationship

A HARARE man is in serious trouble; his former girlfriend has filed a civil suit against him for breaching a marriage promise.

Charity Masaka is claiming US$1 500 from Godfrey Guvava as damages for breach of promise to marry her. Charity told Magistrate Tayengwa Chibanda at the Harare civil court that what hurt her most was the fact that she and Godfrey lived together as husband and wife for two months after he had persuaded her he would marry her. It is for tasting the dish without paying for it that he now faces a bill after the feast. “This man used me,” she said. “We have been staying together as husband and wife since last year December to January this year. This was after he promised me that he would marry me. I would not have stayed with him if he had not promised to marry me,” she said. She also added that the promise was made in the presence of Godfrey’s and her own relatives.

“When he promised to marry me, my sister and her husband were present, as were his three sisters,” she said. Charity justified her claim on the grounds that Godfrey made her endure a lot of emotional pain and sexual abuse. “He has to give me the US$1 500, considering the pain I went through,” she said “And to make matters worse, in those two months I stayed with him, we were not staying as brother and sister. We were actually having sex. So he has to pay for all those damages.”

Godfrey denied he had made Charity a marriage proposal. He said he stayed with Charity by mutual consent. He had never made any mention of  marrying the damsel in distress. “We are both adults,” he said. “I never forced her to come and stay with me. She is lying when she says I promised to marry her. I never opened my mouth to say such a thing.”

Godfrey told the court that his key witness was out of the country. He would have testified that what he was saying was the truth.

“If Judge Guvava was around he could have testified that what I am saying is the truth,” said Godfrey. “It is just unfortunate that he went to South Africa and this court cannot wait for him because I have to rush back for the COPAC (constitution-making exercise) in which I am participating,” he said.

Godfrey and Charity had been lovers since 2006. Their affair ended last January after Godfrey apparently found himself another girlfriend. Magistrate Chibanda deferred ruling to today.