Last week’s Drum cover star Nomasonto “Mshoza” Maswanganyi (34) invited us into her home in Protea Glen, Soweto for her lobola negotiations with fiancé and Ladysmith businessman Thuthukani Mvula (40).
The two families shook hands and gave Mshoza and Thuthukani their blessing in their new journey as husband and wife,
The lovebirds planned to officially tie the knot in February next year – but Thuthukani’s first wife Dudu Ncube says there will be no wedding until she gets a house for herself and their two children.
Thuthukani insists he’s agreed to her terms – but she’s still not signing the divorce papers.
Thuthukani says nothing will stop him from walking down the aisle with the Abantu Bam singer, and claims Dudu is determined to make his life hell.
“Dudu and I are no longer together. The marriage is only on paper (kusele iphepha kuphela).”
He and Dudu separated in 2011. In 2012 they tried to get back together when she gave birth to their second child, but failed to work things out.
“We have two kids and I maintain my kids monthly including paying their school fees. I even bought her a car BMW 323i,” he adds.
Thuthukani says he then served Dudu with the divorce papers in 2014 and she has been refusing to sign them since.
“We are married in community of property,” he says. “Before I even paid lobola for Sonto, I went to her and told her I’m planning to get married and asked her to sign the divorce papers and she agreed to say I should buy her a house, and I agreed.”
Thuthukani says his relationship with Dudu has been over for close to seven years now.
“Can she please just sign the papers and move on as I have moved on? She must understand that she will not stop me from marrying the woman I love. I love Sonto and I want to be with her,” he says.
In spite of all the drama, Mshoza believes she and Thuthukani belong together.
“This is my man and we’re going to get married. No one will stop us. We love each other.”
Thuthukani’s wife Dudu Ncube says her and Thuthukani separated in 2011 and the tried to work things out in 2012 after she fell pregnant but because of Thuthukani’s infidelity, she could no longer stay in the relationship.
“I moved home because he cheated and he will always be a cheater. This year September he phoned me asking me to come back to his house and I refused.”
Dudu says she once had to wake up from bed because a woman came to her and Thuthukani’s house wanting to sleep over.
“What if that woman had a knife and could have killed me? I had to leave him,” she explained to DRUM.
The morther-of-two says she is currently living with their children in a rental house in Mpangeni Township whereas they have three homes that they bought together.
He has never served her with divorce papers so he can live freely with Mshoza.
“I have been waiting for the divorce papers, so he and Mshoza can live happily ever after – I don’t care if they get married or not.
“We married in community of property and I want the 50 percent for my kids to lie in a decent home,” she says.
Mshoza and Thuthukani are using their house in Ladysmith as office space, the house in Johannesburg is a studio for Mshoza and she currently has no access to the house in the rural areas.
“A grown man can’t even get a house for his children, sies!” Dudu exclaimed.
She claims Thuthukani gives her R1000 every month for their two children and she has to use her minimum wage to pay for everything else.
“I have a very bad paying job where I get paid on commission and he is busy living large with his singer girlfriend and fathering Jacob Mnisi’s kids,” she said emotionally.
She told DRUM that she has no problem with Thuthukani marrying Mshoza but he needs to do things the correct way and she would never agree to a polygamous marriage with Mshoza in it.
“If he wanted to take a second wife and it was not Mshoza I would agree, but since it’s her – I can’t, based on all the things I have read in the papers I can’t agree to that and he must just divorce me,” she says.
Dudu said that all of this hurts her because all she wants to do is be a good mother and Thuthukani is coming in the way of her happiness.
