Two teenagers have been allowed to marry so that they could stick to traditional values, and avoid HIV.
|||Durban - Two school pupils who celebrated their traditional wedding this weekend will spend the next few years concentrating on their schooling.
Sakhile Mbokazi, 17, and his wife Nosipho, 19, had already tied the knot in December with a white wedding – when they were 16 and 18.
On Saturday they affirmed their vows in a traditional wedding in Mandini, north of Durban.
The groom’s mother said she allowed the wedding to take place because she wanted the couple to stick to traditional values, and avoid pregnancy or diseases such as HIV.
The groom is a Grade 10 pupil at Tugela High School in Mandini, while his bride is a matric pupil who boards at Masibumbane High School in uLundi, about two hours away.
Speaking to the Daily News, the groom said he felt it was time to marry after knowing his bride for about three years.
“She used to visit here and I slowly got to know her and asked her to be my girlfriend,” he says. “She said yes, and I’ve been with her ever since.”
Sakhile says Nosipho’s self-respect, mannerisms, and that she was a “woman of God” who attended and loved church, showed him that she was the one.
Asked about the pair’s plans for the future, Sakhile said the plan was to focus on their respective schooling and work towards his dream of becoming an engineer.
“I owe a lot to my parents, I appreciate what they have done for us, and one day I will do something special for them to show them my appreciation,” he said.
The groom’s mother, Ncamisile, told the Daily News that she had urged Sakhile to let her know when he wanted to tie the knot to avoid contracting sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
Ncamisile said the family raised R55 000 lobolo for Nosipho and had promised the Khuzwayo family that they would take care of the teenager. Nosipho, according to her stepmother, hopes to pursue pharmaceutical studies next year.
“She is a very diligent girl, but I keep telling them that the most important thing is that they don’t forget about education, that they go to school, get jobs and build a family,” she said.
A home has been built for the couple, but they will only move in when they have completed their studies.
“I didn’t want him to have children out of wedlock and run the risk of contracting all these diseases,” she said.
Ncamisile said that Nosipho’s strict religious values, which prohibit her from having sex before marriage – might have been a reason why the two got married so young.
sihle.mlambo@inl.co.za
Daily News