The Mpumalanga High Court turned down a man's appeal against an earlier order that he has to pay his wife, who is suffering from a life limiting illness, maintenance for the rest of her life.
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An aggrieved husband, who was earlier ordered to pay maintenance towards his divorced wife’s upkeep as she has a life-limiting illness which renders her unable to work, told the court she was fine as he had a private investigator following her and he reported that she enjoyed herself at a wrestling match.
In terms of an earlier divorce order, the husband, apart from paying his now former wife half of all their joint assets, must also pay her R8,000 a month until she remarries or until her death. He must also retain her as a beneficiary on his medical aid and he was responsible for all reasonable medical expenses not covered by the medical aid.
The aggrieved husband, who claims the wife can at least work part-time to support herself, turned to the Mpumalanga High Court, sitting in Middelburg, to appeal the maintenance order. According to the husband, he had sent the wife several advertisements for part-time jobs, which she simply ignored.
The husband said the magistrate erred in finding that the wife needs to remain on his medical aid when it was proved that the Cystic Fibrosis Unit at the Charlotte Maxeke Hospital reopened and could supply the wife with all her medication and treatments, free without any cost. The husband also testified that his medical aid does not allow a divorced spouse to be kept registered on a member's medical aid as a beneficiary after divorce.
He disputed that due to being diagnosed with cystic fibrosis she cannot work. He stated that she lives a normal life like any other person. This has been confirmed by the private investigator who surveilled her on two occasions, at a wrestling event and on a weekend away at a resort, the court was told.
The husband called the private investigator to testify, who reported that during his surveillance of the wife, he found her to be acting as any normal person would act. At the indoor swimming pool at a holiday resort, he saw her with her mouth not covered while she was in the water. This clearly shows that she has no regard for being infected with some viruses. Any person diagnosed with cystic fibrosis would not have done so, the investigator said.
It was also reported that the mother was spotted at a wrestling event, where she once again did not wear a mask while sitting among a crowd of spectators, enjoying herself. The wife’s mother-in-law, meanwhile, testified that she said on numerous occasions that she would financially ruin the appellant should the latter proceed with a divorce.
The wife testified that when she was two and a half years old, she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Currently, she needs 26 different types of medication and therefore needs medical aid. Without it, she would die, she said. According to her, she received her treatment from Charlotte Maxeke’s Cystic Fibrosis Unit, but explained that this unit was closed about three years ago due to insufficient funds and Covid-19.
The court noted that cystic fibrosis was an inherited, progressive, life-limiting condition for which there was currently no cure and that the wife needs ongoing treatment. It also noted that the wife will be unable to work, as she required excessive sick leave both for frequent and prolonged hospitalisations and for regular outpatient follow-up visits, which would be intolerable for a typical employer.
The husband’s appeal was turned down and he was ordered to continue supporting the wife financially for the rest of her life or until she remarried.
Cape Argus
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