TODAY, TUKU WOULD’VE PAID US$2K FOR LOBOLA
L Selmor goes down memory lane with revelations l Praises grandmother for preserving the lobola list
ROUGH estimates show that the late superstar, Oliver Mtukudzi, paid about US$459 in 1978 as lobola for his first wife, Melody Murape, before they held the Wedding of the Year at Gwanzura the following year.
The grand wedding had 48 bridesmaids and the couple were later given a Renault 4 car, as a gift, by the bride’s father, Mufundisi Eliah Murape of the AFM Church.
Yesterday marked the fifth anniversary of the day Tuku died.
Thanks to his daughter, Selmor, we also now know some of the finer details, including US$2 payments, related to how much Tuku paid as he sealed his union with the AFM preacher’s daughter.
“Pane roora list rakatenderera recently which I thought was very reasonable, big up to those parents,” she wrote on her social media handles.
“Hameno kuti iri ramdara wangu when he married my mom in 1978 kuti munorionawo sei?
“It’s 5 years today since you went to be with the Lord, we miss you so much. Continue to rest in peace Dad.”
While the lobola payments were in Rhodesian dollars, we have converted them into US dollars, to ensure our readers can have a good understanding of the transaction.
We have also taken into consideration that the purchasing power of the US dollar has also depreciated sharply, and lost a huge chunk of the value that it had in 1978, in making our calculations.
For example, the purchasing power of the US$459, which Tuku splashed for his lobola in 1978, could be around US$2 159 today.
So, we can safely say if Tuku was asked to pay exactly the same amount for lobola today, it would have been about US$2 159.
Okay, let’s try and put all this into context.
The US$459, which Tuku paid for lobola in 1978, was a SIGNIFICANT amount and one only needs to look at the average salary for a footballer in the English top-flight league, in the same year, to understand that.
Professional footballers in the English Premiership were earning an average US$627 a week in 1978 and now they are earning, on average, US$75 990 every week.
Selmor told H-Metro her parents loved each other despite the challenges they later faced in life.
“Long back, the grocery was meant to feed the in-laws and other visitors who were invited for the lobola negotiations. It was meant to be just enough for the day kana paine zvinosarawo it won’t be much.
“Nowadays, people are even making weird demands including toilet paper and cellphones on the lobola list. Humwe hwangova hundyire,” she said.
Where did she get for father’s lobola list?
“My sister Sybil sent it to me, she said our aunt found it somewhere in the house, I laughed and I was happy and shocked that it survived that long.
“It made me feel happy.
“There was nothing new to learn other than just finding out how much he was charged, I have always known that my parents loved each other despite whatever challenges they later faced, they were very happy.
“I showed the picture to my mom and she laughed and said she had no idea the paper existed.
“Gogo Mtukudzi must have kept it well among all important documents.”