BY SINDISO DUBE DAISY Mtukudzi, the widow to the late music superstar Oliver Mtukudzi has claimed that some family members were happy about the deaths of Tuku and his son Sam.
Tuku died of heart failure related to diabetes in January 2019 while his son Sam perished along with his sound engineer, Owen Chimhare, in a car crash while travelling back to Norton near Harare. Their Tata pickup truck, driven by Chimhare, struck a bridge just before the Kuwadzana Extension off-ramp along the Harare-Bulawayo highway.
Tuku’s widow is the sole beneficiary of his estate, after a law firm filed a one-page will indicating that Daisy Kudzai Mtukudzi will inherit all movable and immovable property. The singer’s children – Samantha, Sandra, Selmor and Sybil – and other family members were left out, leading to family members fighting over property left by the late musician.
Movable properties include a Land Rover Discovery, Nissan NP200, Tata bus, Tata truck and a Challenger trailer. The late musician also left an undisclosed amount of money in his FBC Bank (Belgravia) account.
Speaking in an interview on Star FM, Daisy said some of the Tuku family members were not hurt by the loss (Tuku and Sam’s death).
“I thought when you are family you are united, but I realised that some family members were happy with the death of my child (Sam).
“Even after the death of my husband, some were not hurt at all but happy,” she alleged.
“When someone dies they need to rest in peace and people should not talk about them in bad taste, but people love people’s belongings more than the person.
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“Sam’s death is still painful to me. He was a young man, who had managed to work hard for his name. At the age of 21, he already had a house. I was firm on him and he had to learn the hard way, that’s why many hate me for it,” she said.
Daisy added that many people had predicted that Tuku’s legacy and estate was going to crumble in her hands.
“Many have said Pakare Paye will crumble and his (Tuku) legacy will fade, but I have been trying to keep it safe and it’s still going on. They have said it won’t take a year, but it’s now three years,” she said.
“People have said that I have been selling Tuku’s cars, but I have all the cars. Even his friends have visited and taken pictures at the house with the cars. I am currently using Tuku’s car, which is privately marked Tuku and I won’t even change the plates,” she said.
Responding to questions on her relationship with Mtukudzi’s children with his first wife, Daisy said…
“I don’t know if they don’t love me, but I love them as my children. When it’s said that I am not a good mother I don’t know what they want me to do for them,” she said.
“They stay in their homes, but whenever I have a family function I call them and they come. I treat them as my children. I don’t know what they would be thinking and I don’t know what wrong I did to them.”
Daisy also added that Tuku did not sideline any of the children in the music industry and said that Pakare Paye studios were open for everyone, including Selmor.
- Follow Sindiso on Twitter @Sindora_ZW
