By Samantha Ngwenya
A Kuwadzana man who grabbed headlines a few weeks ago after dumping his blind wife and married his tenant appeared in court charged with bigamy.
Naume Gokoko hauled her husband John Chadzoka to court accusing him of unlawfully entering into a monogamous marriage with Charity Tembo, knowing very well that he is still customarily married to her.
John Chadzoka pleaded not guilty when he appeared before Harare magistrate Richard Ramaboa facing charges of bigamy.
Chadzoka was granted $100 bail and he will be back in court on April 15 for trial.
John Chadzoka and Charity Tembo soon after their wedding
It is the State’s case that Chadzoka and Gokoko are customarily married and the two are currently on a self-imposed separation.
Sometime in 2009, the accused person customarily married the complainant by paying her bride price to her family.
The court heard that the two parties have since been married and staying together up until 2017 when Tembo moved in to their matrimonial home in Kuwadzana which is when Chadzoka and Gokoko started having problems in their marriage.
It is alleged that on March 13 at around 8am, Chadzoka went to the magistrate’s court along with Tembo where they registered their marriage without Gokoko’s knowledge.
Gokoko told the court that he is still married to Chadzoka although he denies their union and pretends as if he does not know her in front of people.
The court further heard that Chadzoka got married since he wanted to be ordained as a pastor.
Gokoko claimed she visited the church on a Sunday after the two got married.
And upon her arrival, she noticed Chadzoka together with Tembo and they ran away when she wanted to greet them.
More so, the complainant explained that she was reduced to a mere child by Tembo in her own house as she used to insult her and sing mockery songs relating to her blindness.
A day after the wedding at the Harare Magistrate’s Court, Gokoko said Chadzoka sent his uncle to her home to ask for forgiveness concerning what had transpired and offered $5 as a peace offering between the two families.
In his defence, Chadzoka told the court that he never paid the bride price for Gokoko, claiming they were cohabiting.
He also claimed that the complainant was taken away from him by her parents along with her belongs which is why he got married to another woman. H-Metro