The legal tussle involving Fatou Guewel Diouf, a Senegalese music diva, and Mbaye Gueye, fondly called “Petit la”, finally started last week and the court’s verdict is expected on 11th March.
Sued by her former husband for adultery and bigamy, Fatou Guewel might be found guilty of bigamy but not adultery, according to a statement by the judge.
Speaking to pressmen outside the court, Fatou Guewel said: “I cannot tell the judge if I have dissolved my wedding or not,” thus increasing the likelihood that the charge of adultery might be dropped.
Meanwhile, the court has established that Fatou Guewel had sealed a new union with Mapenda Seck even though there is no record of any divorce in the marriage with “Petit la”.
The defendant is reported to have been requested to accept guilt and pay a fine of 50 million CFA (D2, 520,000). However Mbaye Gueye is quoted to have said that he still loved his wife and believes that they could reconcile again because of the fact that he never divorced her.
Justifying his demand of a settlement of 50 million CFA, M. Gueye argued that it is his share of the estate that they have built together. “I’m the architect of her success and fortune. If she wants to quit, I should have my part,” he asserted.
All the fans of the “Sope Norainy Music Band” were somewhat taken aback by the extent of the case but the verdict is likely to be known soon.