adminHarare Bureau
DNA paternity tests carried out on maintenance applications against men who challenged fatherhood at the Harare Magistrates’ Civil Court last year have revealed that 75 percent of them were raising children belonging to other men.The paternity tests conducted in 2013 proved that 75 percent of men who challenged paternity of the children they were maintaining won their cases, an indication that some men could be taking care of children belonging to others.
Statistics at the court show that 11 men proved that they were being framed and forced to pay maintenance for children belonging to others while the tests only managed to confirm five men as the real fathers of the children.
Upon announcement of the DNA results, the maintenance orders that compelled the men to support the children were immediately cancelled.
In 2011, 67 percent of men who challenged paternity through DNA tests at the civil court won their cases with six out of nine men being discharged from paying monthly maintenance.
Only three men in 2011 were confirmed to be the fathers of the children they were maintaining after their blood samples were taken for DNA testing at Unistel Medical Laboratories in South Africa.
DNA paternity tests are conducted in cases where a man doubts fatherhood of a given child. From last year to date, the Harare Magistrates’ Civil Court has received up to 50 maintenance claims daily, an indication that unprotected sex and divorce cases are on the increase.
Financially stable men usually fall prey to cheats who shun irresponsible biological fathers of the children.
Among the financially stable men who fell prey to the cheats was prominent businessman Genius Kadungure, who maintained somebody’s child for 11 years.
DNA paternity test results that were announced in court on December 10 last year marked the end of his troubles.
“My friend, it’s not easy to support a child belonging to another man for 11 years. At first I decided to support the child after a lot of pressure from the woman,” he said.
“Being a public figure, I had to avoid trouble by paying the demanded money but my sixth sense would tell me that I was not responsible.”
The matter came to light when the woman, Dorreen Mutukwa, demanded $1,500 as monthly maintenance and the matter spilled into court.
The court provisionally granted $250 maintenance, which he paid from September last year pending the outcome of the DNA paternity results.
Last year, 96 men applied to undergo DNA paternity tests but nearly 50 abandoned their challenges due to failure to raise the required fees.
For a man, mother and one child to be tested, the family has to part with between $470 and $520. In a maintenance application, the onus is on the man to prove he is not the father through DNA paternity tests.
If the man contests paternity, he is given up to six months to undergo the testing. During that period he is ordered to pay interim monthly maintenance until the results are out.
The registry refers the parties to the National Blood Transfusion Services where blood samples are taken and sent to a South African laboratory.
Results are expected after between 10 to 15 days. They would then be sent back to NBTS, which then forwards them to the court.
The court would then call the parties and announce the results.
Online Reporter