Like a common Bemba idiom which states ‘nkobekela te chupo’ meaning an engagement can never be a valid marriage, a 21-year-old woman of Ndola has been left in the cold after her 26-year-old fiancé broke off their relationship.
This is in a case in which Forstine Mwansa has dragged her former fiancé in the Kabushi Local Court for breaching their marriage contract and wasting her time.
Mwansa is demanding that Joshua Phiri 26 a lance corporal in the Zambia Army to explain why he decided to end their three-year relationship.
She told court that in their three-year relationship she performed all duties like that of a wife.
“I want to know why he broke off the engagement when I used to perform all duties for him,” she said.
She said the two started dating in November 2020 when he went to her parent’s house and asked if he could be in a relationship with her.
Mwansa said in December, when Phiri went for military training, sent his family to pay for dowry.
She however said Phiri’s mother later called Mwansa’s parents to say their son will not be marry their daughter as he settled on another woman even though the dowry paid for Mwansa had not been collected.
And Phiri said he was on the United Nations training programme when she told him that she was pregnant.
He said 11 months later, there was no child.
Phiri also stated that he was his parents’ only son and it was an embarrassment for her to lie about expecting his child.
He further told court that he also heard disturbing news about Mwansa which put him off marrying her.
Phiri said both families had a meeting to resolve the issue but Mwansa’s family staged a walkout, which showed that they were disrespectful of his family.
“Your honour, I cannot be with such a woman,” he said.
And in a ruling, Kabushi Local Court presiding magistrate John Sakala sitting with Paul Kayula dismissed the case stating that there was no customary law which supported breach of marriage contract.
