After a questionable traditional ceremony, a ridiculously high amount paid to Ms Karimatsenga’s family and two weeks (or to use the Herald’s more accurate 12 days) filled with media and public speculation about his marital status, the Prime Minister finally has something to say about it.

We should ask if he was ever married to begin with. The only piece of information that hasn’t been contested is that on ‘Friday 18 November a delegation from the Tsvangirai family went to the Karimatsenga family homestead to perform traditional and cultural rites’. The figures of the damages or roora are disputed. With the Tembo family being quoted as telling the media it was $36 000 and unnamed MDC-T officials lowering it to less than $10 000. Everything following the ceremony is arguable.

From the beginning the Prime Minister and his spokespeople have refused to disclose details of what happened on that fateful day in Christon Bank. The Tembo’s reportedly described Tsvangirai arriving at his in-laws’ home in a convoy with enough ‘groceries to fill a house’. Ms Karimatsenga’s aunt is quoted by New Zimbabwe describing Tsvangirai as a ‘cultured son-in-law’ who ‘removed his shoes as per custom’. She goes on to say:

“Imagine if you were in my position. How would you feel? Who would not want to have a Prime Minister as a son-in-law? There are many Senators and MPs, but there is only one Prime Minister. We consider ourselves very lucky and we are happy for the two.”

In contrast, those in the PMs camp have stridently refused to confirm anything other than a meeting took place between the two families.

In the two weeks that followed, the Tembo’s through the Herald went to town with the story. Various members of Ms Karimatsenga’s family are quoted describing their joy in great detail. The Herald’s uncharacteristic interest in the union is also telling. It is difficult to rationalise that a paper whose hostile editorial stance towards the Prime Minister would take a sudden interest in his marital affairs unless a scandal was involved. And of course a scandal did surface. During the PMs silence, which that paper attributed to his need to end his other affairs with four other aspirant Second First Ladies, the Herald published an article about Ms. Karimatsenga’s main rival in romance, Elizabeth Guma. It appeared that the PM had also promised her he would marry her, with one source even saying:

“When you wrote the first story that Mr Tsvangirai had married, I thought it was all about Elizabeth. She has been in love with him and many people close to her are aware of the relationship.”

Coupled with rumours printed as facts about the state of Ms Karimatsenga’s pregnancy, this story implied that the PM was marrying because she was pregnant.

However, the fact of the pregnancy itself was also cause for media gossip. Some sources state that Ms. Karimatsenga is seven months pregnant with twins, and others refute this, quoting mysterious unnamed senior MDC-T sources who allege that she and her family were using a false pregnancy to trap Zimbabwe’s most eligible widower into marriage.

In the face of such extensive media speculation, the Prime Minister remained strikingly silent on the matter. His official spokesman, Luke Tamborinyika, did not help matters by issuing strange and ambiguous statements. He is variously quoted speaking in riddles, where a simple yes or no would have sufficed. It seems the only people who were trying to avoid this embarrassing incident by being clear in their responses were mysterious ‘unnamed senior MDC-T officials’ whose very existence is questionable.

When finally the PM did decide to make his official position public, his statement is also full of ambiguities. In a statement tellingly titled: “Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s position on his reported marriage” Mr. Tsvangirai denies that he was present at the ceremony, yet it is customary for the groom to meet his in-laws after the bride price has been negotiated. His absence seems to indicate that it was not roora that was being paid. Further, the statement makes no reference to an actual marriage taking place, just that there is a ‘relationship’. It is possible that the ceremony was to pay ‘damages’ which also formalises his relationship with the Karimatsenga family as the father to one of their daughter’s children.

In all fairness to the PM, I quite doubt that the affairs of state, such as they are, couldn’t wait for at least a day should he have been married. It is improbable that the Mr. Tsvangirai, a role model to millions of Zimbabwean men, would find the time in his busy schedule to make Ms. Karimatsenga pregnant (with twins!) out of wedlock, but not have time to meet his supposed in-laws. But it is a shame that the PM when faced with the same situation as many young men, has handled it with a lot less grace. Munya Chidzonga faced with the same sort of circumstances left no room for speculation at any point in his relationship with the mother of his son.

So what really happened? Truthfully, it’s none of our business and in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t matter. But the office of Prime Minister is a public one, and public attention to his private life is something the Prime Minister should be, if not comfortable with, then at least aware of. Despite what he and several media allege are the machinations of ZANU PF in tarnishing his image, the Prime Minister has successfully accomplished this himself. Ours is a society that expects powerful men to have at least a wife, a girlfriend and a little something on the side. Therefore, he could not have been publicly humiliated for sowing his wild, if aged, oats about the savannah.  But love in the time of HIV/AIDS, especially as a public official, is a difficult thing. Who will take him seriously when he endorses the ABCs of safer sex when it is clear he does not practice it?  And what kind of man leaves the future mother of his child and possible bride to defend herself against the wolves when he has full knowledge of what they are capable of?  That he did not clarify his position with regard to the traditional ceremony or his relationship with Ms. Karimatsenga a lot sooner is very telling of his character as a man.

This entry was posted on December 2nd, 2011 at 9:04 am by Upenyu Makoni-Muchemwa and is filed under Media, Reflections, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.