A Kadoma resident, Dr Believe Guta, who petitioned Parliament to amend the Maintenance Act to require mandatory DNA testing before men are obliged to pay child support, is expected to appear before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs this Tuesday to clarify his petition.
Guta’s request seeks to have the law [Chapter 5:09] changed so that a man’s biological parentage is confirmed before maintenance is enforced.
In his petition, submitted under Section 149 of the Constitution, he pointed out what he described as a major legal and human rights gap in the current Maintenance Act, particularly Section 23, which allows imprisonment for men who default on maintenance payments—even when paternity has not been proven.
He argued that the lack of mandatory paternity verification or legal declaration has led to men being jailed based on disputed or later disproven parentage.
The petition proposes amending Section 23 to include a clause requiring that no legal proceedings be initiated unless paternity is confirmed through voluntary acknowledgement, a court declaration, or a DNA test, particularly in disputed cases.
Guta has been summoned to Parliament to elaborate on the issues raised in his petition.
More: ZBC News
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