THE Chilenje Local Court has ordered an unemployed man of Lusaka’s Mtendere Compound to be paying K500 monthly for child maintenance.
This is in a matter in which Barbara Kachepa, 28, of Mtendere sued her lover James Tembo, 37, for failing to maintain his two children.
Kachepa told Local Court Magistrate Hildah Choonya sitting with Magistrate Ackim Photo and Francesca Zulu that the two lived together and have two children but that Tembo contributed only K7 for upkeep.
“Our rentals were due and he told me that he was being chased from work. He asked us to shift and go and stay with his parents He left us there in October 2017 with no support that’s how I went back to my parents,
“I followed him once to ask for child support and he beat me up, when the children get sick he does not even visit them. I want him to be supporting the children and he should make the payments through the court,” said Kachepa.
Kachepa told the court that she was no working and did not have money to support the children.
The court rebuked Tembo for not supporting his children.
“It’s unfortunate that you as a father you can say that you don’t work and that’s why you fail to support them; they will not get help from elsewhere but you. You have 100perent access to them,” said Magistrate Choonya.
The court ordered Tembo to take full responsibility of his children and maintain them with K500 every month effective March 31.
