Enterprising 32-year-old polygamous man with 3 wives, 13 children
Upon realising that the familiar MASAF 4 vehicle which had a stopover at Karonga Boma was heading to his village, he asked for a lift back home.
He was granted. But to the surprise of everybody in the vehicle, when it was time to leave, he asked for more time to complete his shopping.
As we patiently waited for him, he was busy moving from one shop to another, buying learning materials.
Later he returned with several notebooks, pens and other learning materials, prompting us to ask who he had bought for.
“They are for my children. I have 13 children from my three wives,” said Buta Mweso, smiling.
At only 32, we thought he was joking that he had three wives and 13 children. We probed more.
“Yes, I have 13 children.
“And I am not afraid to feed them,” he said, smiling again.
Mweso, from Simon Village in Traditional Authority Kyungu in Karonga District, is an enterprising farmer who works hard to take care of his big family.
The three wives and 13 children are not the only people he takes care of; he also looks after two children of his late sister.
There are other polygamous men in Mweso’s locality and beyond with several children, but a few realise their situation to work hard and fend for their children like Mweso does.
Most heads of such families have left the responsibility of caring for children to their wives.
When communities in his area started Kayelekera Irrigation Scheme in 2005 with only 25 farmers on a meagre 1.5 hectare land, Mweso quickly joined and became a member.
The scheme became robust in 2016 when MASAF 4 came in to assist the group with pipes and cement which they used to construct a 300-metre-long water canal that supplies water into the 18-hectare irrigation field.
Upon seeing the water canal would pass by his compound, Mweso quickly thought of constructing a fish pond to take advantage of the passing water. He is now harvesting the fish, for sale and consumption.
He then started constructing a bigger fish pond, 30 m by 40 m in size but work has stalled because of lack of funds to buy cement so that he could complete it.
Mweso offered his three hectares of land to the irrigation scheme to contribute to its growth so more farmers could join and benefit from the facility.
It is such courtesy plus his commitment and dedication to farming that have earned him the title of lead farmer within the scheme.
“I wish my bigger fish pond was completed so I can assist my 18-member strong family better,” he said.
But since work on it has stalled, he has to make do with the smaller fish pond, 10 m by 10 m in size from which he has already started harvesting fish.
“I wish well-wishers assisted me with cement; I would complete the larger fish pond because I have skills of doing it,” he said.
Mweso has a number of plots in the scheme where he grows rice, maize, tomatoes and leaf vegetables.
“We now have plans to expand the irrigation scheme to 25 hectares so that more farmers join,” says Mweso whose father died when he was only six and got married when he was 18.
As if to copy from Mweso’s idea, the expanded scheme would also include a dam where the group intends to start fish farming.
Mweso’s wives have not left the burden of caring for children to their husband. All of them are members of the irrigation scheme and have plots where they grow different crops for consumption and sale.
His most senior wife, 29-year-old Vera Mtambo who has five children, said she grows rice, maize tomatoes and various leaf vegetables. Her co-wives do the same, just to ensure they look after the children well.
Meanwhile, Mpata Extension Planning Area Agriculture Extension Development Officer Peace Kapira says he often monitors the farming activities at the scheme and crop fields belonging to individual farmers.
He says his office has endorsed the farmers’ idea to expand the irrigation scheme.
“I monitor their activities at least three times a week to see how irrigation activities progress. They now want to expand the scheme to 25 hectares from the current 18-hectare land,” says Kapira.
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As long as he can provide for them all no problem!
Za ku mpoto izi. Three wives with 13 children. Tikanakhala ife bwenzi Atumbuka akujama apa.
i don’t understand why we hate polygamy and allow gay people
Do we really want to promote and celebrate polygamy in this country? With its associated real and opportunity costs to the spouses, children and society at large?
In 2020 abale?
Too many Births is a disgrace to a society…. he can’t learn that he is also keeping his sisters children, where are the sisters…. where are the husband of those sisters kumpoto timalowola, at what age did he marry, first wife is a young woman with five children if allowable marriage age is 18 then 5 children in 11 years is a horror movie, and yet in between he has other children with other wives again… SHAME, are you trying to say if he had a few he was not going to work that harder?…… Show us his home, his children.
USELESS MAN!!!!!!
I was waiting to see the types of comments on this story. This story has taught me something about Nyasatimes readeship. If this guy were to come from the south..we could have seen the abuse of –alomwe: “Zimene amadziwa ndizomwezo”. You can finish the next part of my statement ….
This is the attitude that is pulling Malawi back. How hard we can work and how enterprising we are, if we do not check the population growth we will be like this young man. Poor and asking for donations.
Exactly. How can someone ask for donation when he claims to manage his family. What a selfish man he is. He doesnt care about HIV and increase in population. It is such people who have contributed to Malawi being a poor country. Shame.
Call him a selfish, egoistic and libidinous man until the virus (HIV) kills him that is when he will know.
Enterprising man who is pushing Malawi backwards. FOOLISH.
Polygamy is a stupid and backward tradition. When I see stories glorified in Nyasa Times and other newspapers, I despair. I realise why we Malawians and Africans will remain poor people. How is this man going to be able to provide the best education, clothes, shelter and good health care to 13 children? Does he and the wives have enough time to support all the children so that they can do well in education. Europeans realised long time ago that having more than 1 wife is detrimental to an individual, family and national development. In the Arab world, they have many children buoyed by their oil but the price they pay for having ‘absent fathers’ is unending conflict by young boys and men. Polygamy denies children quality time with their father. It is also denies women the right to a fully satisfying sexual and marital relationship. Not surprising that many women in polygamous relationships have extra marital affair – well, just like women whose husbands are promiscous.
I think you need to read the article again
Very true. A woman in polygamy will have extra marital affair thereby attracting HIV and other STI’s. Polygamy is indeed a backward tradition.
Bola mitala than chisembwere ……..a lot of you commenting here about this man you have hidden mistresses and ‘husbands’ and bastards….munathawa…so which is which?
How clean are you?
What’s this picture showing bubu to the public anyway it’s not new in Malawi having more than one woman, but the fact the man is hardly working on to see the family future more especially the children the great. Really otheren are good to produce children and when it comes to caring they are good as hit and run
Mzungu ndi Yemwe amatodandaula with showing Boobs in Public ….Kwa Azungu mkazi ndi Mabere …Sinamvepo munthu wakuda atodandaula kuti Mzimayi atowonesa Mabere in Public poyamwisa …Ku Africa People are Upset more ndi Kuonetsa ntchafu in Public…Koma poti timatongera malamulo Azungu Basitu…
Chotsani chithunzi cha belelo nzobisa izo amalawi galamuka
Kwa Azungutu where women can’t breast feed in Public… Akatoona bele Basi kuyamba kuganiza Zolakwika …This is Africa women had the Right to Breadfeed anywhere…. nothing strange here.
In Malawi, we are mandated to give breast milk to our babies anytime and anywhere. It doesn’t matter how the baby is given food kaya bere likuoneka kaya ayi there is no problem what matters is that the babies breastfeed mwakathithi.
What are we learning from this story? Seems it has a mixture of two dfrt stories..
Are we praising the gentleman coz he has 13 children whom is able to feed them?? Without being mindful.of other negative factors as a nation to such over population. He has vast land but with the large crowd he has will the land expand or they will all be sharing same land we are saying.its vast today.
Let us stop praising Mediocrity
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A happy, so mukuti model pa level imeneyi akhale wotani? Mukudana ndi mitala kapena? Awasiye akazi enawo ndi Ana? Look at the whole picture . This is encouraging…….he is doing something about the situation. Osamangosatila mfundo za azungu, mitala siyolakwika as long as anthu azimvana and zinthu ziziyendapo bwino.
His story is a sad one. Not exemplary at all other than he has a great sperm count
It seems he is in a problem, that’s why he is asking for help.
At least he is taking good care of the brood
Hard working man
zinyadira zimenezi?
He takes care of his big family.
Not a model.
It all depends on what angle you are interested in. If he is not a model, who is making the scheme to grow bigger. you wanted him to be on the street everyday demolishing people’s hard earned property in the name of promoting democracy? Shame! Polygamy is his private life
He is a model my friend bcoz is a hard worker. It could be senseless if he had these three wives but lazy in his undertakings and fail to support his 13 children and two opharns.
Agree