Tembo ‘lied’ on number of children

Malawi's political old-hand John Zenus Ungapake Tembo (JZU) has been accused of lying on Zodiak Radio and Capital FM radio interviews about the number of children he has fathered as Nyasa Times exclusively investigates.

Tembo in separate interviews with Brain Banda in a Straight Talk radio program and Zodiak's Tereza Ndanga repeatedly said he has three children only.

When Tembo was asked by the two radios he bragged that he had only three children two females and a male, who he is proud of.

But Nyasa Times investigations reveal that the political veteran and Malawi's leader of opposition has more children-of course not with his wife. They include Ellen Natembo and Edward Tembo who lives in England and Dudu.

Natembo: JZU's daughter

Edward Tembo; John Tembo's son

Natembo, who is a legal practitioner and her brother, uses the name Tembo for a surname.

A close relation to Tembo said it is shameful that the veteran politician choose to deliberately omit his own children when deep down his heart he knows very well that he has "a legion" of children.

"That's disgusting on Tambo's part as a father. Why should he hide the number of his own children? Is the kind of a leader Malawi wants? If he can't tell the truth about his own children can he tell the truth about anything?" he said.

"It is very distressing for the children to know that a man who they regard and respect as their biological father refuses to recognise them in public," he added.

"How can he not mention Ellen, a lady the world knows as his own daughter? Even when she was at Chancellor College where she graduated as a lawyer before relocating to the UK everybody knew her as Tambo's daughter? Does Tembo have shame at all? If he is refusing to recognise grown up and well educated children what more with those that never do well with education. How many pregnancies has he refused if he can refuse a grown up child? " he added.

Tembo, president of Malawi Congress Party (MCP), was one of the most powerful, fearful and influential figures in the one- party state under dictator Kamuzu Banda.

Nyasa Times 25 Aug, 2011

--
Source: http://www.nyasatimes.com/national/tembo-%e2%80%98lied%e2%80%99-on-number-of-children/
~
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com