MAN BEATS WIFE, ATTEMPTS SUICIDE

LOMAHASHA – Even the fact that it is Women’s Month is not enough to deter people from being violent to their spouses.

Had it not been for her children, a 43-year-old woman’s name would have been added to the growing list of victims of gender-based violence (GBV). *Zama was beaten to a pulp by her husband who left her thinking she had died then attempted to commit suicide by consuming a poisonous substance. She allegedly ran to her children’s bedroom and used them as shields while her husband, *Jack, wielded a spear which he allegedly wanted to stab her with. After noticing that he could not use the spear due to the presence of three children, the oldest being about 11 years old, Jack is said to have used a stick to hit his wife. She sustained injuries on the head and her right arm. The bone of contention was that he allegedly accused her of wanting to kill him. Jack, who is a member of the Jericho Church, is said to have gone to see a priest, who is also a traditional healer and prophet. He is said to have gone to consult the prophet after concerns that he had unending troubles, including poor health.

Priest

The priest is said to have told Jack that his wife was the one trying to kill him. When he returned home on Saturday, at around 5pm, Jack is said to have asked his wife about one of the pots he claimed was missing. Zama said an argument ensued over the pot he claimed he could not see in the house. He is also alleged to have accused her of wanting to kill him. The argument is said to have started inside the couple’s bedroom. She said during the argument, Jack began to attack her, but she fled to the dining room. “I noticed that he was aiming at stabbing me because he had a spear in his hand,” said Zama. She said she then fled to the children’s bedroom and found her three children terrified due to her screaming, but used them as shields. “If it wasn’t for them, he would have stabbed me to death,” she said. Zama said it was at this point that her husband went to look for a stick, which he used to attack her.

Violently

She said he began to hit her violently while hurling out unpalatable words. “I screamed for help and my neighbours came to my rescue,” she said. Zama said one of her neighbours then called out to Jack to stop hitting her. However, his response was; “Ngifuna kumshiya afile” which means, “I want to leave her dead”. Eventually, Jack is said to have left his wife and fled to another room. This was after the neighbour managed to stop the fight. When reached for comment, the neighbour said he rushed to the homestead after hearing the screams for help.
He said Jack quickly went to another room to get a bag, but did not understand why. He said Jack then gave him instructions on how he should distribute his cattle when he was gone.
“I did not understand what he meant until I realised that he was drinking a poisonous substance,” said the neighbour. He said he rushed to take away the container from Jack, but he had already consumed the substance. He said he then rushed to give him cooking oil and some cow dung to force him to vomit. Jack was then rushed to hospital where he is still admitted.

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