Bona Nyapudzai Ouma Mugabe, the late former president Robert Mugabe’s daughter, is divorcing her husband Simbarashe Mutsahuni Chikore after nine years of marriage as their marital union has irretrievably broken down with no prospect of reconciliation and restoration.
Simba and Bona (as they are widely known as) married in 2014 at Mugabe’s Blue Roof mansion, Borrowdale, Harare, amid pomp and fanfare in 2014. The wedding, one of Zimbabwe’s biggest and most flamboyant, was attended by local political and business bigwigs, and regional leaders.
At the time, it was reported the wedding had cost over US$1 million. The actual cost of it was never made public, but it was funded through family, friends and relatives, as well as public figures’ contributions. Simba and Bona did not have such a perosnal fortune to pay for it.
The two lived at a house which Mugabe donated to them during their extravagant wedding along Quorn Avenue in Mount Pleasant, Harare.
Mugabe lived at that house in 1980 as he prepared to become Prime Minister after elections, soon before he moved to Zimbabwe House and State House.
As first reported by The NewsHawks in great detail in 2021, Simba and Bona were building a huge US$39 million mansion that was moving fast prior to Mugabe’s removal from power in a 2017 coup and continued albeit at a reduced pace after that until his death in September 2019.
Following Mugabe’s death, work has been moving at a snail’s pace, with insiders revealing that the budget has been cut from US$39 million to US$20 million after the couple decided to forego expensive stylish decorations, security measures and other costly specifications.
Bona is claiming kids’ custody. “It is in the best interests of the minor children that the Plaintiff is given full custody of the children with the Defendant being granted access to them every alternating weekend from Saturday between 8am to Sunday 5pm agreed in advance.”
Simba musy pay US$8 100 a month maintenance, Bona says. “In the event of the granting of the Divorce Decree by the honorable court it will be just and equitable that the Defendant be ordered to pay maintenance for the minor children in the sum of USD2 700 per child monthly until attaining of majority status or they become self-sustaining whichever occurs first.”
Bona wants US$2 700 per child and since they have three kids, it means Simba must pay US$8 100.
Simba now has some business interests even if his controversial ZimAirways deal collapsed. Bona said during the subsistence of their marriage, they jointly as well as severally acquired various movable and immovable property.
However, she says dealing with proprietary issues in the suit will delay granting of the divorce decree. So for convenience, that comes later.
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