Kasama Pastor Sued For Alcoholism, Abusing Wife

By MUNIDE ZULU
SELF-acclaimed men of God have continued making headlines with the latest  development being where a 29-year-old pastor of Revival Pentecostal Church in Kasama  has been dragged to court for beer drinking and abusing his wife.
Doreen Mwanza, 26, of Mtendere Township told the Chelstone court that her husband, Pastor Phillip Mulilo, turns her and their two children into punching bags each time he goes home from his usual drinking.
Mwanza told senior presiding magistrate Hope Mwila sitting with senior court magistrates Lewis Mumba and Bertha Zulu that despite Mulilo being a pastor, he is violent and turns into a monster once he gets drank.
“He had at one time beaten me until I started bleeding and he almost burnt me and my children in the house. This pastor also insults my parents,” she said.
Mwanza said she has on several occasions moved out of her matrimonial home and packed all her belongings because of Mulilo’s  behaviour.
She further said she was at one time on nine months separation with Mulilo but later reconciled after he pleaded for forgiveness.
“I’m no longer interested in this marriage because he can kill me,” Mwanza said.
This was in a case in which Mulillo sued Mwanza for marriage reconciliation.
In his submission, pastor Mulilo pleaded with Mwanza to forgive him for all his wrong doings and he promised to change into better person.
And when asked by the court why he preaches the word of God when he is abusive and violent towards his wife and children, Pastor Mulilo said despite his bad behavior, he manages to preach the word of God because it is his calling.
Earier, Mulilo complained to the court that Mwanza likes packing her belongings and goes to her mother’s home whenever they had an argument.
“She has been packing her belonging for more than seven times. I used to follow her when she goes to her mother’s home as she would sometimes go for nine months. I’m no tired of her behavior because I can not be following her at her mother’s home as if she was my girlfriend,” he said.
And when the court asked him if his wife was mad to pack her belongings without any proper reasons from her matrimonial home, Mulilo said “I have tried to tell her that we both need to go for brain scanning to ascertain our mentality but she has refused.
Mulilo also said Mwanza becomes uncontrollable when she gets upset.
He further said he at one time forgave Mwanza when she was found with a sexually transmitted disease (STI) known as syphilis and when she forced him to undergo voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) .
“Mwanza has been telling me that I will die from diseases but she is the one who was found with an STI when we went for medical checkup. I do not know what type of disease will kill me because I’m not HIV-positive,” Mulilo said.
In passing judgment, Magistrate Mumba failed to reconcile the duo because there was too much violence in their marriage.
Magistrate Mumba also said the court can not reconcile the duo when Mwanza has refused to do so.