Chief drops hammer on serial adulterer

Tendai Gukutikwa
Weekender Reporter
A MUTASA man who admitted to having an affair with another man’s wife has been sternly warned by Chief Mutasa to abandon his habit of pursuing married women, following his involvement in numerous similar cases before.
The parties appeared before Chief Mutasa last Saturday when Peter Gonye accused Sam Museve of breaking up his marriage by engaging in an illicit relationship with his wife while he was working in South Africa.
Museve confirmed that he was having an affair with Gonye’s wife.
Gonye said his suspicions were confirmed shortly after he unexpectedly returned home from South Africa.
“I did not tell my wife that I was coming home. When I arrived in Mutare, I phoned her, and she claimed she was returning from her rural home. Something did not feel right, so I asked to see her phone,” he said.
Gonye discovered a message his wife had sent to Museve asking him not to call because her husband had returned.
“When I questioned her, she tried to explain that the message was meant for a neighbour, but I was not convinced. I continued searching through her phone and found another messaging application she had been using to communicate with him secretly,” he said, adding that the hidden messages showed his wife had informed Museve that he had returned and instructed him to stop sending messages.
“There were also conversations in which she complained that he had refused to buy her a dress and had instead bought her a tracksuit for her to wear when going for a medical scan,” said Gonye.
Feeling betrayed, he said, he immediately went to his wife’s parents to report the matter before returning with his own parents for a family meeting.
“My wife initially denied everything despite the evidence. Museve was eventually called to the meeting and he admitted that he had slept with my wife. After denying it for a long time, my wife also confessed and apologised,” he said.
Gonye accused Museve of having a history of wrecking marriages within the community.
“I am not the first man to lose peace in his home because of him. This is why I decided to bring the matter before the chief. Such behaviour should not continue unchecked,” he said.
He further told the court that since the affair came to light, his wife had moved out of their matrimonial home.
Museve did not dispute the allegations. He admitted responsibility and said he was in the process of compensating the Gonye’s family.
“I accepted my wrongdoing and apologised. I have already paid US$40 as part of the compensation. During family discussions, it was agreed that I would also pay five head of cattle and US$700, although I have not yet managed to raise the money,” he said.
Asked why his own wife had not attended court, Museve said she had refused despite him telling her to do so.
The hearing took another dramatic turn when Museve’s uncle, Peter Dirwai Museve, openly expressed frustration with his nephew’s conduct, saying the family had repeatedly tried without success to correct his behaviour.

“As a family, we are exhausted. We no longer know what to do with him. Even at his age, he continues chasing after married women despite having his own wife,” he said.
He told the court that relatives were embarrassed by Museve’s conduct.
“Many members of our family are now ashamed to be associated with him because wherever he goes selling chickens using his vehicle, he ends up getting involved with married women. This is not the first incident. He has been involved with many women, and we need help to stop this behaviour. It is because he has a car that he also uses for pirating and when he picks up married women, that is when he lures them with goodies and a good life. He ends up cheating with them. It is a shock that he is still married,” he said.
Chief Mutasa rebuked Museve, saying his actions were causing unnecessary conflict within families and communities.
“If you have chosen to pursue married women, then you must also be prepared to meet the consequences because such actions attract compensation under our customs,” he said.
He, however, refused to alter the compensation agreement that had already been reached by both families.
“I cannot interfere with an agreement that both families voluntarily made. What was agreed at family level should be honoured,” he said.
Turning directly to Museve, Chief Mutasa issued a firm warning.
“What you are doing is wrong. Stop sleeping with married women. Leave other people’s wives alone and respect other families,” he said.
He said preserving marriages remained an important pillar of peace within communities and urged villagers to resolve disputes before they escalated.
Museve assured the court that he would honour the outstanding financial commitment.
“I will pay the US$700 by August 15,” he pledged.
The matter was concluded after Chief Mutasa directed Museve to fulfil all the obligations agreed upon during family negotiations.