(NEWZIMBAWE) MDC-T's Mhashu admits incest, says 'lonely'

COMMENT - More corruption and graft from the stooge party, the MDC.

MDC-T's Mhashu admits incest, says 'lonely'
27/10/2012 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter

MDC-T legislator and former National Housing Minister, Fidelis Mhashu, has admitted engaging in incest with two of his nieces and blamed the incidents on "loneliness" after his wife relocated to the United Kingdom in 2003.

Mhashu, 70, who fathered four children with the sisters, one of whom died in 2007, told The Sunday Mail: “I was lonely when my wife and children left the country for the UK. I then requested for assistance from my nieces at family level, but, unfortu­nately we ended up falling in love. It is not true that I raped them.”

The Chitungwiza North MP has since been fined 15 heard of cattle by Chief Chivero of Mhondoro for the offences but said he would appeal the ruling.

“We attended the court hearing on the 14th of this month and after the ruling I indicated that I wanted to appeal because where on earth can I pay such ridiculous amounts,” he said.
The surviving sister has however accused Mhashu of neglecting her and their two children.

She said: “I have two surviving children with this man. The other one is only seven weeks old and, unfortunately, I cannot breastfeed the child.

“We have no food and I am now relying on hand-outs from neighbours for survival.”
Mhashu however, denied the allegations and dismissed the woman as a “gold digger" keen on destroying his political career.

“These people are gold diggers what they want is money. The late sister was a widow with four children when we started cohabiting. Our union produced one child who died seven days after the mother,” he said.

“I then began living with the younger sister and we were blessed with three children. Unfortunately we lost one. (The family wants me to pay lobola but) if I pay lobola I will be committing a crime because I am legally married.

“What we were doing was just cohabiting. I still love her; it’s only that she is being used by my enemies to destroy my career.”

The women’s brother said the relationships started after Mhashu sought refuge with their family back in 2004 when he fled political violence in Chitungwiza.

“He came with nothing, but, as an uncle, we had to accommodate him. Within a few months we discovered that he was having an incestuous relation­ship with my older sister,” the brother said.

“We tried to talk to both of them, but all our advice fell on deaf ears. He would always say ‘let’s deal with this privately because if the public gets to know it, that will be the end of my political career’.

“He initially promised to marry my late sister so as to avoid public embarrassment, but later changed his mind.”