Father threatens to ‘sacrifice’ daughter if ex-wife doesn’t pay debt

Richard Sakala, 39, from George Compound, appeared before the Matero Local Court sitting in Zambia, where his ex-wife, Fridah Ngulube, 34, laid bare a bitter tug-of-war over money from a plot meant for their children.

The drama began when Richard gave Fridah K12,000 after their 2022 divorce to buy a plot of land for their three children.

According to Zambia Observer, Fridah paid K10,000 for land worth K19,000, but the balance became difficult to pay, so the seller later offered to sell the plot to another and refund them their down payment.

“The owner suggested selling the plot to refund us, and I conveyed this to Richard.

“Richard then proposed that we sell the plot and purchase a new one later, asking me to find a buyer.

“Given our children’s best interests, I decided to purchase the plot myself, but Richard quoted K35,000.

“After some negotiation, he agreed to sell it to me at K30,000,” she recounted.

“We agreed that from the K30,000, I will give him K10,000  and use the other K10,000 for the upkeep of our children since Richard stopped providing support after our divorce and use the remaining amount to clear the balance for the plot.”

Fridah paid K4,000 and promised to settle the K6,000 balance with Richard.

She pleaded with her ex-husband for more time to settle the K6,000 balance, as she needed to prioritise their children’s school fees over repaying Richard, particularly since he had stopped providing financial support after their divorce.

But instead of waiting, Sakala turned up the pressure.

“He says he is willing to sacrifice one of our daughters,” a terrified Ngulube told the court, adding that her ex-husband had stopped supporting the children.

Richard defended his threats, saying he urgently needed the money.

The senior magistrate, Lewis Mumba, was unimpressed, telling Richard to show compassion.

“Your ex-wife is struggling to provide for your children. Why not have pity on her?” he asked.

Mumba then gave Fridah six months to repay the K6,000.

“I will give you six months as from today to repay the K6,000. It’s important that you settle this matter for the sake of maintaining peace between both of you.”

“I urge you to continue supporting your children as you have been doing, but avoid any further interaction with Richard

“This will help keep peace and prevent future misunderstandings,” Mumba advised Fridah.