No child no marriage, Musa tells barren Chanda
By Charles Musonda
THE lack of a child in a five-year-old marriage has led to divorce between Micah Chanda and Abraham Musa.
Musa told a court that he now wanted to concentrate on his girlfriend who had given him a child, which his wife had failed to do as a result of natural infertility.
Chanda, 28, a mobile money booth attendant of Garden House in Lusaka, sued Musa, 31, of the same area for divorce on grounds that he had already made up his mind to dump her for his baby’s mother.
She told Matero Local Court magistrate Nancy Ngoma that she got married to Musa in 2021.
The problems started in 2024.
Chanda said Musa yearned for a baby and told her that he did not want to die without a child.
She said he later told her that his side chick had a baby.
“In January 2026, he tore our wedding photos. We sat down to resolve the issue, but he said he wanted to marry his girlfriend, who has a child with him. He even tore our marriage certificate after I told him to take it back to Bible Gospel Church in Africa (BIGOCA) where it was issued,” Chanda said.
She told the court she was shocked that after some time, Musa wrote her a letter that he wanted a divorce.
“He later wrote me a letter that he wanted a divorce and asked me to tell my family to refund him his dowry. He packed his clothes and left home on 26th January 2026 and I don’t know where he has been,” Chanda said.
In his response, Musa said they used to make love before marrying her, and that he told her a certain condition he had with his reproductive system.
He said Chanda then forced him to seek medical attention at the hospital using her money and that after medical examinations it was found that he was fine while Chanda had blocked fallopian tubes.
“…after that she started taking herbs and kept a charm in a bucket and that the same charm started growing on its own after she fed it with cold tea,” Chanda said.
Musa said he could not tolerate her use of herbs because of his Christian background.
He accused Chanda of bringing other men into their matrimonial home in his absence.
Chanda’s mother, who was called as a witness, supported the divorce, saying there was no cooperation in the marriage.
She said Musa had deserted her daughter and left her alone since January this year.
Musa’s father said he would have loved the two to remain together but since they had decided to divorce, the court should grant their wish.
In her judgment, Ngoma found that Musa started sleeping out with his girlfriend while still married.
She said she would grant divorce because both families had already agreed.
“Customary marriage doesn’t allow separation and the court has seen that you have been in separation from January to September. Divorce is granted according to your wish without any compensation to either party. I order that you maintain her for six months only, with K1,000 per month with effect from October month-end because it is not her wish [to fail to have a child]. Under tradition, failure to have a child is one ground for divorce,” Ngoma said.
