CCAP refuses to officiate wedding of Malawi Prison chief:  Mist over divorce with Mcheka Chilenje

CCAP Blantyre Synod has refused to officiate a wedding of chief commissioner of prisons Kennedy Nkhoma with a new fiancé on accusation that he did not divorce her wife, deputy speaker of parliament Esther Mcheka Chilenje Nkhoma.

Nkhoma was previously married to Mcheka Chilenje but the high profile marriage did not last due to what sources described as bad blood between the wife and her step children.

The Prison chief lodged at St James CCAP Church in Blantyre for marriage officiating ceremony but the church could not proceed, saying it does not promote bigamy.

Nkhoma submitted to the church a Marriage Divorce Certificate (MDC) Number 108 of 2012 as requirement for the church to start announcing the wedding.

Nyasa Times understands that African customary law marriages act states that marriage can only be dissolved when two parties have been heard but apparently Mcheka Chilenje feigns ignorance of the divorce proceedings.

Investigations indicates that on 4 February, 2014, the lawyer for  Mcheka Chilenje  wrote the Blantyre Principle Resident Magistrate Innocent Nebo informing him that lawyer ( Wapona Kita) would not be available for the case which was scheduled for 6th February 2014 because he was attending another high profile case at the High Court .

The lawyer requested that the “the matter be adjourned to the later date that would be agreed by all the parties.”

Mcheka Chilenje insists that she ever attended any divorce case from any conventional court.

Nkhoma and his legal team however proceeded to obtain the divorce certificate in the absence of the other party which is against rules and procedures of natural justice.

Chilenje expressed ignorance that her husband is having a Marriage Divorce Certificate as she never appeared at any court for divorce proceedings with Kennedy Nkhoma.

“The issue of marriage has never been resolved before  any forum, not even before Ankhoswe let alone the church which blessed our marriage, to me that’s news,  am just hearing it from you,” she told Nyasa Times.

When put forward to her that the certificate has been presented at St James CCAP as evidence that she is no longer in marriage with her, Mcheka Chilenje said:  “Please I have already told you I am not aware of that.”

When Nyasa Times asked Nkhoma how he obtained a divorce certificate in absence of his wife, he said: “I am not a lawyer to explain all legal finer details.”

Session Clerk at St James church of Blantyre Synod, Mike Uko confirmed that the Church is not officiating the wedding as requested by Nkhoma.

Sources within the church alleges that the church raised its eyebrows regarding t the manner and reasons Nkhoma  transferred the wedding ceremony  from Zomba CCAP where he is based and why he preferred to officiate the wedding at Blantyre St James CCAP Church.

Reverend Mmangisa of Zomba CCAP, in an interview confirmed Kennedy Nkhoma is still a member of Zomba CCAP but denied having given transfer letter to him to wed at St James CCAP.

In 2007 Nkhoma and Esther Mcheka Chilenje tied a knot in what was billed as wedding of the year which was attended by the former president late Bingu wa Mutharika.