Entertainment

6 and counting: Meet Jacob Zuma’s wives

The former president of South Africa has been married six times, and currently has four wives. His fiancée, Nonkanyiso Conco recently joined Twitter, and is set to be his fifth, and youngest wife…
The engagement to Nonkanyiso Conco (who is 52 years younger than the former president) allegedly caused upheaval in the Zuma household in 2018. However, the mother of Zuma’s 23rd child has staked her claim as his seventh wife by creating a Twitter handle under the name @MrsConcoZuma.

Conco, from Ballito, gave birth to the child in April last year. The journalism graduate was a director at Nomkhubulwane Culture and Youth Development Organisation in Pietermaritzberg but reportedly resigned from her position after the baby was born.

Although Zuma has reportedly paid lobola, there hasn’t been any further information on when the wedding is set to take place. And with 2019 being an election year, Zuma may be too distracted by political appearances to focus on wedding arrangements.
So who are Jacob Zuma’s current and former wives?
Zuma currently has four wives and one fiancée. However, he has been married six times. Here are some details of Zuma’s current and former wives:

1. Gertrude Sizakele Khumalo
At 79, “MaKhumalo” is the oldest of Zuma’s wives, and has stuck by his side through thick and thin. She married him shortly after he was released from prison in 1973, and the couple stayed together while he lived in exile. The couple never conceived any children together.

Gertrude Sizakele Khumalo
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma (now divorced)
The anti-apartheid activist was married to Jacob Zuma for 16 years, but they divorced in June 1998 due to “irreconcilable differences”. They have four children together.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma

Dlamini-Zuma was appointed as Minister of Health in the cabinet of President Nelson Mandela in 1994, and has held a number of political offices.

Kate Mantsho (deceased)
Sadly, Jacob Zuma’s third wife, Kate Mantsho died after overdosing on sleeping pills and malaria drugs in 2000. She was 44 years old at the time.

Born in Mozambique, Mantsho moved to South Africa where she and Zuma conceived five children together during their 18 years of marriage.

One of their offspring is Duduzane Zuma, who has made news headlines around the world for his involvement in #StateCapture and the Gupta scandal. Duduzane has a twin sister, Duduzile (Dudu) Zuma.

Kate Mantsho

Mantsho was given a state funeral where Thabo Mbeki (who was the president at the time), and Nelson Mandela addressed mourners.

Nompumelelo Ntuli

44-year-old MaNtuli was banished from the Nkandla homestead after an alleged plot to poison the then-president came to light in 2015.The couple have been married for 11 years, and have three children together.

Nompumelelo Ntuli

The poisoning ‘plot’ was discovered by US doctors who told Zuma that his 2014 hospitalisation was a result of poisoning. MaNtuli denied any involvement in the incident, but currently resides in KwaMaphumulo near Stanger.

The Hawks conducted an investigation into the incident, but no charges have been laid against MaNtuli.

Tobeka Stacie Madiba

“Courtship 1 year, madly in love for 25 years 11 months and married 9 years today,” Tobeka Stacie Madiba posted on Instagram on Saturday, 5 January 2019.

The 46-year-old grew up in Umlazi and has three children with Jacob Zuma. She has a B.Com degree and describes herself as a “philanthropist”.

Tobeka Stacie Madiba

She is a patron of the Tobeka Madiba Zuma (TMZ) Foundation which aims to raise cancer-, HIV-, and TB awareness and the importance of testing and screening to those in rural communities.

She often posts photos of herself and the former president on social media, and shares some of the family’s private moments including pics of Christmas celebrations.

Gloria Bongi Ngema

At the age of 70, Jacob Zuma married his long-time fiancée, Gloria Bongi Ngema. The traditional wedding ceremony took place in April 2012 in Nkandla. The couple have one child together.

Gloria Bongi Ngema

The businesswoman from Durban Heads was devastated by the loss of her mother and aunt to diabetes, and started the Bongi Ngema-Zuma Foundation to help raise awareness and combat the disease.

Source: All4Women