Online dating at the African doorstep

02 Dec, 2018 - 00:12 0 Views
Online dating at the African doorstep

The Sunday Mail

Emmanuel Kaffe

FOR the past two years, Grace “Lady G” Mukono (31) has dedicated much of her time to initiating romantic relationships for those that are single and searching.

Mukono is the brains behind “Date Me Zimbabwe,” one of the country’s most active and followed online dating platforms.

Lady G also organises social events for members of her group to mingle with each other as they seek to meet the perfect partners.

Mukono, who is herself single, is proud of what she has achieved so far.

“So far six couples have come back to thank us after they got married. Some couples, I presume, hooked up on our social media platform, got married and elected not to furnish us with further developments,” Mukono said.

But is online dating a good way of meeting a future spouse?

The above question aroused an interesting debate when it was recently posed to people of diverse religious backgrounds.

Mukono, a Christian, says there is nothing wrong in matchmaking.

“Marriages comes from God. As a matchmaker, I put 10 percent effort, with the couple adding the other 10 percent. God, who is the creator of the universe, contributes the remainder,” said Mukono.

Pastor Emmerson Fundira of the Jehovah Sharma Ministries has a different view.

“Some people might conclude that I disregard online dating as I am not part of the new generation. However, from my observations, online dating has more disadvantages than conventional dating methods,” Pastor Fundira said.

According to Pastor Fundira, some people have been raped, robbed or maimed after meeting sex predators through dating websites.

Madzibaba Gamba (Martin Madzura), a Harare-based traditional and faith healer who is also the Kundiso Apostolic Faith Church leader, dismissed online dating as an “unAfrican” concept.

“As Africans, we have our own ways of matchmaking and this involves parties that might actually know each other. Online dating allow strangers to confess love for a person they have never even met. That cannot be love,” said Madzibaba Gamba.

Traditionalist and president of the Zimbabwe National Practitioners Association (ZINPA), Sekuru Friday Chisanyu said online dating is associated with many risks and does not conform to the African culture.

“Sexual deviants hide behind technology to satisfy their lustful needs. Some people tend to falsify the information they avail on dating websites, resulting in some participants losing their valuables or even their lives,” he said.

According to Sekuru Chisanyu, there are much safer traditional ways to arrange marriages.

“Culturally, we had our ways of arranging marriages. The process was thorough, it involved strict vetting. One could not marry off their children to total strangers,” he said.

Islamic Affairs in Zimbabwe Chair, Sheikh Ishmail Duwa said his faith discourages online dating.

“The purpose of dating is to have a relationship that will eventually lead to marriage. One has to marry a person he or she knows physically. They also have to know the person’s spiritual beliefs. Online dating is risky and we discourage it,” Sheikh Duwa said.

Online sources indicate that according to traditional Islamic law, women and men are not free to date or intermingle, which results in a more drawn-out and deliberate matchmaking process.

A large majority of Islamic marriages are arranged with parents or guardians selecting appropriate matrimonial mates for their offspring.

However, several Muslim dating sites are available online, with SingleMuslim.com being one of the most prominent websites. A glance at several online platforms revealed that there are many active Christian dating websites.

On some of the dating sites, members are asked to quote their favourite religious passages and also to describe their religious beliefs.

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