Zimpapers Logo

Jessica Chibaya, a neighbour, shows the septic tank in which Mlilo tried to drown himself

Sukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent—
A 36-YEAR-OLD man driven to the edge of despair by his wife’s infidelity attempted to commit suicide three times in two days – but failed in all three attempts. Convinced he has breathed his last, Nqobile Mlilo, a manager at Spar Butchery in Plumtree, updated his WhatsApp status on his mobile to read: “Dead.” First, he drank dip chemical but survived the ordeal after neighbours rushed him to Plumtree District Hospital last Saturday.

He sneaked out of the hospital in the middle of the night and attempted suicide for the second time by slicing his throat and stomach with a knife on Sunday morning. When that did not kill him quick enough, he jumped into a septic tank in the hope of drowning – but was was rescued by residents of Garikai suburb.

Mlilo found himself back at Plumtree District Hospital. Last night, he was battling for life at the United Bulawayo Hospitals’ Intensive Care Unit after being transferred from Plumtree.
Mlilo’s cousin, Patience Sibanda, said: “We’ve not managed to talk to him as he can’t speak. He’s not eating or drinking water… he has to be drip fed.”
She said she last spoke to Mlilo on Friday and he was complaining about having serious problems with his wife.

“I was chatting with my Nqobile on Friday and he kept going on about how his wife was disappointing him. He told me to look after his two children while he went away, but I really didn’t get the sense of what he was saying. He had also changed his status on WhatsApp to ‘dead’ and this all seemed strange to me,” she told Chronicle.

“He also told me that he was in trouble, but he didn’t say exactly what was bothering him. I called him on Saturday in a bid to better understand his issues, but his phone was unreachable and later I got news that he had tried to kill himself.”

Patience said Mlilo was now living separately from his wife. He claimed the woman was unfaithful and before their separation, Mlilo had caught her on several occasions with different men on their matrimonial bed.

She said her cousin ordered his wife to leave, but she kept returning to their house and damaging property in protest over the decision.
Garikai resident, Jessica Chibaya, who helped pull Mlilo from the septic tank said he broke into her house while she was sleeping and stole a knife, which he then used to cut himself.
“I found Mlilo in a septic tank which is outside my home early in the morning. He was lying inside and he was bleeding profusely from the throat and stomach. He had a deep cut on the throat and he had ripped his stomach open with a knife and his intestines were protruding,” she said.

“In his hand, he was still holding a small knife and I quickly identified it as mine. My house is still under construction and the kitchen is not complete, anyone can access it because there is no door or roofing but I only store kitchen utensils in there.”

She said Mlilo was rushed to the hospital for the second time by a neighbour.
A Plumtree District Hospital official said Mlilo escaped, during his first admission, through an opening in the fence as the gate was always guarded.
He said they had Mlilo on an intravenous drip but he removed it and disappeared.

The official said they referred Mlilo to the United Bulawayo Hospitals because of the severity of his condition.