COURT WARNS AGAINST HIGH BRIDE PRICES

AS BRIDE prices continue to rise in Zambia, Lusaka Local Court Magistrate Daniel Phiri has warned that it is inappropriate for people to ask for huge amounts of money in exchange for their daughters.
Magistrate Phiri said it was wrong for parents to ask for exorbitant amounts as lobola and compensation for damages after their daughters were impregnated.
This was in a case where Leyungo Pumolo 52, sued Mike Vluhukis, 33 after the defendant failed to pay K25,000 compensation for impregnating his daughter.
Facts before the court were that in 2012 Vluhukis impregnated Pumolo’s niece and was told to pay K25,000 in damages.
Pumolo told the court that since 2012, when Vluhukis was ordered to pay the money, the defendant had failed to settle the amount.
The court also heard that Vluhukis did not support his child despite promising that he would be doing so when the child was born.
“I want him to give me the money that I asked him for damages, and he should also start supporting his child,” he said.
In his defence, Vluhukis submitted before the court that he failed to pay because the money was too much.
He said Pumulo ordered him to pay K25,000 as compensation for impregnating his daughter but reduced it to K17,000 after he complained.
Vluhukis said he decided to visit his girlfrind’s biological father who told him that he should just concentrate on taking care of the child and forget about paying the K17,000 he had been asked by Pumolo.
“The K25,000 and K17,000 is just too much to pay for damage, I have not refused to pay him provided that he reduced the amount,” he said.
But Magistrate Phiri sitting with Shallon Sichone and Pauline Newa said asking someone to pay K25,000 as compensation for damages was tantamount to selling the child.
Magistrate Phiri therefore reduced the amount by asking Vluhukis to pay K6,000 instead of the K25,000 demanded by the plaintiff.