Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Tsenulo Moyo
BULAWAYO is being christened with various names, with one of the popular ones being “komfazi utshay’ indoda” (where wives beat up their husbands).
Living true to the moniker, Petronella Magagula (26) from the city’s oldest suburb of Makokoba was arrested after allegedly assaulting her boyfriend, Tawanda Moyo.
For the offence, Magagula appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Polite Dube-Banda, facing assault charges.
She pleaded not guilty to the charge, and the matter was remanded to 16 January after the complainant was in default and a warrant of arrest was issued against him.
In her defence, Magagula alleged that Tawanda was her boyfriend, and on the day of the alleged offence, he came to pick her up at her home to go for drinks.
“At around 8pm, Tawanda was already drunk and when some people who were passing by greeted me, he accused me of squandering his money and that I was now being greeted by my boyfriends,” she said.
Magagula said an altercation ensued between them, and the complainant slapped her, leading her to leave where they had gone for drinks.
She further alleged that the reason the complainant made this allegation against her was because she had started ignoring him after the incident.
Circumstances are that on 23 August 2024, at Madhamara Shopping Centre in Mzilikazi suburb, Magagula is alleged to have assaulted Tawanda by slapping him several times on the face. The matter was reported to the police, leading to the arrest of the accused person.
