Adamant nurse ordered to pay pastor

Sukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent
A PLUMTREE District Hospital nurse has been ordered by a local magistrate to pay a Full Blessing Church of God pastor $487 for building materials which she bought on credit last year.

Jephious Ncube, who is also the proprietor of Maibongwe Hardware Shop in Plumtree approached the court after Shamima Khumalo refused to settle the debt claiming that she did not owe him any money.

Ncube told the court that he had made several attempts to collect the outstanding payment for the building materials from Khumalo, but the nurse kept on dodging him.

‘’I know this woman as she is a regular customer at my hardware shop and she normally takes building material on credit. She took building material worth $613 last year and she doesn’t want to pay up as she was claiming that she doesn’t owe me,” said the pastor.

‘’She had promised to pay her debt in full by December last year. I paid her a visit at her place of residence on several occasions but she kept evading me.’’

He said on September 25 last year, Khumalo bought door frames, window frames, cement, wheel barrow, barbed wire and zinc nails valued at $741.

He said she paid $300, leaving $441 as the balance.

Ncube said the following month, Khumalo further took building material valued at $372, bringing the total balance to $813.

He said the nurse paid $200 and promised to settle the remaining $613, to no avail.

Ncube presented invoices to the court as proof that the woman owed him.

However, Khumalo said she owed Ncube $487 only and accused the pastor of inflating the price.

‘’I didn’t disagree to meet with Ncube and to pay him but I told him that I was always busy at work. I told him that I was only free on weekends when his shop was closed,” said Khumalo.

‘’I also told him that I had a query with the invoice which he gave me as the material which he delivered to me didn’t match the list as there was a shortfall. I also made a payment which he is now denying to have received.’’

The magistrate ordered her to pay $487 that she said she owed.