Zimbabwe: Bona Mugabe Weds Her 37 Years Old Man Photos

Zimbabwe: Bona Mugabe Weds Her 37 Years Old Man Photos

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe's only daughter, Bona, 24, wed in a lavish ceremony Saturday at the family's private home in Harare's plush Borrowdale neighborhood with three sitting heads of state from the region among the guests.

Thousands of people attended the no-expense-spared family event broadcast live by the ZBC-TV but from which media organisations not owned by the State were banned.

South Africa's President Jacob Zuma attended the event along with top-Mugabe ally, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, Zambia's Michael Sata and other former leaders from the region.

However, little is known about Bona's 37 year-old husband, Simba Chikore, apart from reports that he is a pilot for Qatar Airways.

Born in 1977, his mother Christine, is a member of the Zimbabwe Assemblies of God Africa church (ZAOGA), attended by Grace Mugabe before she married the Zimbabwean leader who is a Catholic.

Last year Chikore paid $35,000 and 15 cows to President Mugabe for the hand of his daughter in marriage. The traditional marriage ceremony was held at Mugabe's rural Zvimba home.

South Africa's Independent Newspapers group reported Sunday that both Emirates and Qatar airlines denied Chikore worked for them, but Zimbabweans based in Qatar insisted that he works for Qatar Airways.

"Chikore actually works for Qatar Airways and we attended a party along with his work colleagues here ahead of the wedding. Most of his friends from work flew out to Harare for the wedding on Thursday," said a Zimbabwean based in Doha.

The lavish wedding, said to have cost about $5 million, has been criticised by many, especially as it followed President Mugabe's $1 million 90th birthday party.

The lavish spending comes at a time the country has been appealing to the UK for funds to ensure some 250,000 underprivileged children are not thrown out of school for failing to pay fees.

Zimbabwe has also appealed to the international community for about $20 million to deal with the flood emergency at the Tokwe Mukosi dam.

A junior officer with the central intelligence organisation (CIO) also said Simba Chikore was a playboy ill-suited to be Bona's husband.

The officer said Grace Mugabe's determination for the marriage to go ahead and her disdain for the country's spy agency had prevented proper vetting of the First Son-in-Law.

"Simba Chikore aka Mutsahuni - 37 years old is the son of a Zaoga leader. He attended school at St Johns High and finished in 1996 as a head boy. He later went for flight school in Chicago Ilinois where he stayed briefly. He later returned to Zimbabwe and worked for Air Zim where he left in 2010," the CIO officer said Sunday.