Chronicle Editor
Bongani Ndlovu Showbiz Correspondent
DISCOVERING new talent, bonding with their children, helping around the house; these are some of the experiences that men are going through during Zimbabwe’s 21-Day lockdown with their families. Families who were not spending much time together have had nearly 20 days today under lockdown to partake in quality time and get to know each other more.
Most of the time men shy away from being at home and rather be with their friends at their favourite watering hole or with friends and return in the wee hours of the night. By this time the children will be asleep and most probably the wife. With alarm bells ringing that this 21-day lockdown could bring a rise in domestic violence, some men who spoke to Chronicle Showbiz this week, said this has been a time for them to bond with their children and wives during the lockdown.
Bulawayo Scorpions bouncer and show organiser Terminator Makoni said staying at home with his wife and children has been a great experience as the whole family enjoys being with him.
“Th e family enjoys being with ubaba (the father) and that promotes love and they feel very secure. You do all things together. Remember we were always up and down, from one town to the other with gigs and we could hardly spend time with family. Now we can even exercise together, do things like aerobics as a family,” said Makoni.
He said he, like many other men and husbands, he is worried that since he is not at work, no money is coming in but a lot being is spent during the lockdown.
“Th e only disheartening thing is that money is being spent and there’s no money being earned. It’s just another angle of life, this will pass and hopefully things will be back to normal soon. God will never leave for His love is everlasting,” said Makoni.
When people are around each other all day, there is bound to be confl ict. Th e most common confl ict is what to do with the decoder remote to change channels to watch.
It seems ZBC’s Khulumani FM radio presenter Sakheleni Nxumalo and his wife who is a businesswoman, Emma, have a solution as they let their two children watch whatever they want during the day and they take over at night. He said the lockdown has brought the couple closer to be “each other’s number one supporter.”
“One thing that the lockdown has rekindled for us as a couple, is being the other’s number one supporter. Emma has started a lockdown exercise challenge and has given me all sorts of roles from consultant on how to execute the exercises to being the videographer. She, on the other hand, has become my biggest cheerleader when I am on air and rallies up support through social media,” said Nxumalo.
In Zimbabwe, schools have been closed and children spend the whole day at home as they are part of, according to the United Nations, an estimated 1,25 billion children worldwide are at home as a result of the coronavirus lockdown. Th e challenge, like for many other parents around the world, is how to keep their children entertained and Nxumalo is in the same predicament.
“With the kids it’s a bit of a challenge having to keep them entertained and still do school work but we have tried to strike a balance,” said Nxumalo.
Artistes like Nkululeko Dube, the director of Iyasa who is married to Mercy Kayumba, said he was always out and about with the group and the lockdown has made him appreciate his family much more.
“I’m a travelling artiste. I spend half of the year outside Zimbabwe all things normal and by now I’d already have started my expeditions. Covid-19 has seen me postpone my projects and spend more time with my wife and children outside our ever busy schedules. We bond more, we share more and honestly, I think the children love it more We have always underestimated the need to dedicate more time to each other,” said Dube.
When a couple is stuck home together it becomes overwhelming for one as he or she does all the work.
But for a Bulawayo man Professor Sibanda, the lockdown has given him the opportunity to help his wife around the house and relieve her of some of the duties like caring for their young son.
“Th e lockdown has allowed me to be a great husband as I am able to help around the house, like cooking breakfast for the wife and the baby, feeding and bathing the baby.
“This has eased pressure on my partner; our lives are ever busy, it could be work, it could be school, it could be business, these take up most of our time and we tend to forget the important things in life.
“Th e lockdown has allowed me to sit down and appreciate things that make us who we are. It has turned me into the world’s best dad because I’ve been spending more time with my son and instilling values of being a man in him.
“Together we’ve been cleaning the yard, washing the car and taking the dog for walks. We’ve been bonding very well with my boy.
“In as much as this period is worrying it is a blessing and a curse as Sun Tzu says “in the midst of chaos lies opportunity”.
However, its not all rosy in some love nests as Darlington Banda from Burnside says he can see that his wife is not happy.
“The lockdown is stressful for my wife who is a working woman, ordinarily she would love to be home but not for such a sustained period, there are the obvious strains with the kids who are teenagers and they have opinions of their own and these do clash here and there with their mother, but generally it’s been peaceful with of course the apprehension of what the future holds,” said Banda.
For comedian Carl Joshua, him and wife Nelsy have had two years of preparation and have learnt to appreciate each other more.
“Fortunately for myself and my wife we spent most of our time together even before lockdown. We have been living off the grid so isolation or lockdown for us began two years ago. But we have learnt a lot during this time mostly to appreciate what we have and to not focus on non-important things like going out and being seen by people,” said Ncube.
Musician and actor Madlela Skhobokhobo said being at home is one of the few moments in his life that he can be Bashimane Mothusi Ndlovu.
He said during the lockdown he has become very close to the first born of his three children who has revealed his art ambitions.
“My job requires that I travel a lot hence sometimes fail to spend time with family. This pandemic has forced us to spend time with our families which is a good thing. I was not very close to my first-born son because he is at a boarding school but now, we are best of buddies. Th is time has made us bond very much. He is so passionate about art just like his father. Apparently, he wants to study film aft er A-level,” said Madlela.
Model and businessman Ben Chest said he now knows more about his wife and his children than before.
“We are making up for all the time working and forgetting to spend time with our families, like our children and our wives. Work forces us to be busy all the time. Th is moment has taught us that we should value our families and must spend more time with them. Even though we get busy we must spend time with them, learn and do some activities with the family. It has brought us very close because I know what my children and wife like, even the kind of food and what they want to do with their time,” said Ben Chest.
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