A DRIVER of Lusaka has divorced his wife of seven years in the Boma Local Court because she consumes too much ‘nsunko’ tobacco and drinks more beer than him.
Chuungu Chakatuba, 29 of Matero complained before Local court senior magistrate Juliet Mwila that his wife Rachael Phiri, 31, a teacher was almost a slave to nsuko and had vigorously taken and wanted to divorce her.
“My wife sleeps with nsunko on the bed and sniffs whenever she feels like,” said Chakatuba.
He said that he married his wife in 2013, and has two children together, dowry was paid.
Problems started when she started drinking beer and sniffing nsunko.
“I usually find her with friends at home drinking whenever I go out and this pains me because when she starts drinking beer she doesn’t do house chores on time and this angers me and end up beating her,”
“Okay I used to take her out to clubs for drinks to make her happy when we were dating, but now she drinks more than me and on top of that smokes nsunko a lot of which I am fed up with,”he said.
He further said that family tried to sit them down on several occasions and she promised to change but still it became worse.
“We don’t cooperate as a couple because she sleeps with nsunko, and what pains me most is when I give her money to buy food or pay children school fees she only pays half and the other half she buys beer and nsunko, for this reason we once divorced and remarried again,” Chakatuba said.”
“We are on separation now, I have been forgiving her on several occasions but still drinks and whenever she is drunk she insults me, hence my coming to court,” he said.
In defence, Phiri told court that her husband was a womanizer, and whenever she asked him about such things he beat her with an iron.
“My husband lies to me that he is at work when he is with his girlfriend. We are on five months separation because of wrangles we have been having,” she said.
“Things became worse in our house when his mother came to visit, she took over our marriage and commanded everything. Whenever I go out to the market she calls my husband that I have gone to see men, and whenever my friends visit she reports to her son,” she said.
She told court that her husband is the one who introduced beer to her, and talking about nsunko, her mother in-law introduced because it warms the body for enjoyment of sex.
The court found that both contributed to squabbles in their marriage.
“Divorce is granted and Chakatuba was ordered to compensate Phiri with K5, 000 to be paid in monthly installments of K250 effective 28 June and another K250 to be paid for children support,,” said magistrate Mwila.
