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Hlabile Dube Court Reporter
A MARRIED man dressed down his estranged girlfriend in court yesterday, telling the magistrate that she pushed him into having unprotected sex saying condoms turned her off. Ocean Sibanda, a soldier, refused to pay maintenance to Roselyn Sibanda who was demanding $100 monthly for their one-month-old baby.

“She refused to use a condom. I asked her if she was aware that I’m married but she insisted on having unprotected sex with me knowing I didn’t love her but at the time I was having problems with my wife.

“I asked her if she was on birth control and she said ‘no.’ I can’t pay maintenance for this child because I suspect it’s not mine.
“Why did she push me to have unprotected sex?” said Sibanda.

He said when they went for a scan with Roselyn, the results did not match.
“Maybe she was already a month pregnant because we went for scan and she was over the date by a month.
“Now she wants me to pay maintenance for another man’s child,” blasted Sibanda.

He requested the court to allow him to do a paternity test before he could pay maintenance.
“I will pay maintenance once it’s proven that I’m the real father of this child,” said Sibanda.
Roselyn stood defenceless and failed to oppose Sibanda’s argument but kept demanding maintenance.

“Your worship, the baby is a month-old and I cannot afford to raise her alone. I’m unemployed and I’m staying with my parents. I need money,” she said.

Passing judgment magistrate Vimbai Mtukwa said couples should learn to discuss their problems in private before approaching courts and ordered Sibanda to pay maintenance while he raised money for the paternity test.

“Normally it’s good to discuss these issues before coming to court. While you raise the money for the paternity test, the child needs to be taken care of.

“I order you to pay $20 per month starting end of March and then come to court on June, 26, with paternity results,” she said.