Harare – A sensational love triangle involving prominent business executive and academic, Dr. David Madzikanda, has taken a dramatic turn in the Harare Magistrates Court. Dr. Madzikanda, testifying as a State witness, candidly declared that the two women at the heart of the dispute – Tsitsi Mutseriwa and Millicent Murape – are both his girlfriends, attributing their bitter fallout to jealousy. This latest development has intensified public interest in a case already grabbing tabloid headlines for weeks, not least due to Dr. Madzikanda’s connection as the father-in-law of controversial businessman Wicknell Chivayo.
The court proceedings are centered on a cyberbullying case and allegations of malicious damage to property, with both Ms. Mutseriwa and Ms. Murape having dragged each other to court. Ms. Murape, a former tenant at a property owned by Dr. Madzikanda where Ms. Mutseriwa resides, now faces charges under the Cyber and Data Transmission Act, alongside accusations of property damage.
Dr. Madzikanda’s Unfiltered Testimony: Marital Status, Property, and Demands
Dr. Madzikanda, a well-known figure with a distinguished career as a senior lecturer at the UZ Graduate School of Management, an Associate Professor at the Kuwait Maastricht Business Schools, and former chairman of the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority, appeared in court yesterday. He reportedly attempted to shield his face from photographers, seemingly aware of the controversial nature of his presence.
Under oath, Dr. Madzikanda offered a stark clarification of his relationships:
“I never married Mutseriwa and will never marry her, I have only one wife at home, who works for a bank,” he stated unequivocally, referring to Sonja’s mother, who is an FBC Bank official. He confirmed that he started dating Tsitsi way back but never married her. Regarding Millicent, he added that she was “just his girlfriend” and that the child they have together was a result of an “arrangement between them”.
Crucially, Dr. Madzikanda addressed the property dispute, asserting his ownership of the Harare house where Tsitsi Mutseriwa lives. He told the court:
“I am the owner of that property, therefore the only person who has the right to report any damage to property is me, not Mutseriwa.”
He blamed Tsitsi for accusing Millicent of destroying property that did not belong to her. He further testified that he attempted to engage Tsitsi to withdraw the case, but she allegedly held him at ransom, demanding that he build her a house and buy her a car for her to drop the charges.
The Genesis of the Altercation: Jealousy and Pregnancy
Accusations of Cyberbullying, Property Damage, and Witchcraft
The court heard a litany of accusations between Ms. Mutseriwa and Ms. Murape. The case involves allegations of cyberbullying and even trading witchcraft accusations. Millicent Murape is also facing charges of malicious damage to a property owned by Tsitsi.
According to State papers, on July 5, last year, at approximately 9 pm, Tsitsi allegedly received abusive WhatsApp messages from Millicent’s phone number. More abusive text messages reportedly followed the next day, July 6, last year. Millicent, however, did not reply on either occasion.
Millicent is further accused of using stones to break window panes at Tsitsi’s house. It was revealed that Millicent was a tenant at Tsitsi’s house before she began her relationship with Dr. Madzikanda.
Tsitsi Mutseriwa’s claims paint a vivid picture of Millicent’s alleged intentions. She testified that Millicent, in her abusive messages, boasted about transforming from a tenant to Dr. Madzikanda’s wife and becoming the new boss and landlady at the property. More disturbingly, Tsitsi told the court that Millicent accused her of bewitching her during her pregnancy, alleging that Tsitsi placed “some juju on her doorstep so that she would suffer a miscarriage”.
Tsitsi’s emotional testimony included:
“This woman (Millicent) is our lodger and now my husband’s girlfriend. She insulted me on WhatsApp and also broke my property’ windows. She accused me of bewitching her by saying that l placed a charm on her doorsteps so that she would miscarry her pregnancy (and lose) Dr Madzikanda’s child.”
Mutseriwa also shed light on the complexities of her ‘marriage’ to Dr. Madzikanda, revealing that he has four other wives, including some from the “touchline.” Despite the polygamous nature of her ‘marriage’, Mutseriwa insisted that her decision to report Murape to the police was not motivated by jealousy but by a need for self-protection. When prosecutor Polite Chikiwa questioned her about potential jealousy, Mutseriwa firmly stated, “I cannot have problem with Dr Madzikanda sleeping with some people’s wives, his problem is that he is searching for a son as he only has daughters. Even if he goes to the touchline, I don’t care.” She added, “Murape used to call my husband while she had her husband because she didn’t want to pay rent. I am surprised why she want to sleep with a 65-year-old man when her age type are many”.
A Confrontation and a Protection Order
Mutseriwa recounted a particularly tense encounter when she went to Murape’s apartment to confront her about the abusive messages. To her surprise, she found Dr. Madzikanda inside Murape’s apartment. “I know Murape had her husband and l was surprised to see my husband Dr Madzikanda inside her room in the middle of the day when he was supposed to be at work,” Mutseriwa told the court. She further claimed, “I waited at the door for one hour and when they came out l tried to talk to them but they refused to talk”. This incident underscores the brazenness of the affair and the apparent disregard for Mutseriwa’s feelings.
Following this confrontation and the continued harassment, Mutseriwa sought legal recourse by obtaining a peace order against Murape. However, this provided only temporary respite. Mutseriwa testified that after the expiry of the peace order, Murape sent her another abusive message, indicating a persistent pattern of harassment.
Millicent Murape’s Counter-Narrative
In her defense, Millicent Murape presented a contrasting narrative. She told the court that she and Mutseriwa are both girlfriends to Dr. David Madzikanda, suggesting a more equal footing in the love triangle than Mutseriwa’s portrayal. Murape accused Mutseriwa of stalking her and attempting to damage her reputation. She also claimed that Mutseriwa had called her a prostitute, alleging that this was driven by jealousy over her relationship with the elderly doctor. Murape vehemently denied throwing stones or breaking any window panes at Mutseriwa’s residence, directly refuting the malicious damage to property charge.
The Prominent Figure: Dr. David Madzikanda
Dr. David Madzikanda is not an obscure figure in Zimbabwe. He is a well-known business executive and academic, currently serving as the Board Chair of the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA). His professional background includes extensive experience as an engineer, with 17 years in the electricity sector and 20 years in academia. He is also an academic and lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe, where he has served as the Dean of the Faculty of Business Management Sciences and Economics. His public profile as a strategic leader and academic adds another layer of intrigue to this deeply personal scandal.
The Wicknell Chivayo Connection: A Family Affair Under Scrutiny
The scandal gains further prominence through Dr. Madzikanda’s familial ties to Wicknell Chivayo, a controversial Zimbabwean businessman known for his flamboyant lifestyle and frequent appearances in the media. Dr. Madzikanda is the father-in-law of Chivayo, whose ex-wife is Sonja Madzikanda. This connection inevitably links the domestic dispute to a broader narrative of high-profile individuals and their personal lives playing out in the public eye.
The Madzikanda family is no stranger to public scrutiny and legal entanglements. Wicknell Chivayo himself has been embroiled in recent legal battles concerning his divorce from Sonja Madzikanda. In April 2026, Chivayo reportedly agreed to pay his ex-wife, Sonja Louise Madzikanda, a substantial $5 million for child maintenance in a high-stakes marital dispute. Furthermore, Sonja Madzikanda and her mother, Tabitha Madzikanda, faced charges related to allegedly publishing AI-generated photographs of Chivayo with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. These charges were later withdrawn. These past events add a complex backdrop to the current scandal involving Dr. David Madzikanda.