Wizard’ loses defamation case
Written by Millennium on May 20, 2019
DIANA NSOFWA writes
A MAN who sued his fellow parent-in-law for calling him a wizard walked out of the courtroom disappointed after his claim for compensation was thrown out for lack of evidence.
The Matero Local Court dismissed the case in which Kasiyala Siyambango, 68, of Lilanda West sued his in-law Esther Zulu of the same township for defamation.
The two were appearing before magistrate Pauline Newa.
Siyambango told the court that they knew each other because their children were in a love affair.
“Her son paid half of the bride price but she did not know about the marriage because her son came with his other relatives.
“When she found out she followed me at church and we talked. She had called me to her house, but it was rough there. She even slapped my daughter,” Siyambango said.
“She said that my daughter is a prostitute and that I am a wizard. She alleged that I had put her son in a bottle and made him wear black clothes and that I had confused him,” he told the court.
He said Zulu said if she died then he would be the one who would have killed her.
Siyambango said Zulu told him that he should be taking his daughters to the streets to undress; maybe they would have a market.
Two witnesses told the court that Zulu called Siyambango a wizard and she said that his daughters were prostitutes.
Zulu told the court that she got to know about Siyambango because her son left his wife and three children to go and live with his daughter.
“He does not support the wife and children that he left. That is how I knew about his daughter. I even sat her down. Once I followed him at church and asked if he knew my son. He said he was married to my daughter, and they were staying at his place,” she said.
“I wanted to sit down with his family but when they came we did not come to an agreement. I wanted to know the people who paid the bride price,” Zulu testified. She said Siyambango claimed that he had proof but the paper he brought had only been signed by his family.
Zulu went to Siyambango’s brother’s house who said if his daughter did not have market she should go to the village”.
“I told him I have no one to help me take care of the children. My son had left. Siyambango just wants to be staying with my child,” Zulu said.
But the court found it difficult to grant Siyambango’s claim forcompensation saying he had failed to prove a case of defamation
“Defamation has three ingredients that the court looks at: it needs direct and not hearsay, secondly two or more people need to hear and thirdly the allegations need to be a lie.
“All three need to qualify so that it can be defamation. It has been dismissed because you just heard and there is lack of evidence,” magistrate Newa said.
