Pretoria - Falling into arrears with his maintenance towards his two teenage children for eight years will cost a father living in an upmarket waterfront estate outside Pretoria dearly after his ex-wife managed to have him finally sequestrated.
The couple, who cannot be named to protect the identity of their children - aged 15 and 17 - divorced in 2005. They signed a settlement agreement in terms of which the man accepted liability to pay R650 a month for each child, with an annual escalation of 10%.
He also undertook to pay half of their medical expenses and contribute 50% towards their private schooling.
His former wife, who turned to the high court in Pretoria to have the man sequestrated, said he complied with his obligations until about 2008.
He also has limited contact with his son and daughter.
According to the woman, the man’s outstanding maintenance is R358 949. She tried to resolve the matter amicably, without running up a hefty legal bill, but he simply “ducked and dived”.
In April, Judge Vivian Tlhapi placed the man under provisional sequestration and gave him until this week to state his case.
The order has now been confirmed, after the father, through a lawyer’s letter, said he “simply cannot afford” to pay even a portion of the outstanding debt.
He asked his wife to consider a lesser amount, but said if she was not willing to do so, he would not oppose the final sequestration order.
The consequences of him being declared bankrupt is that a curator will be appointed to secure his assets and take steps to recover the outstanding debt.
The woman, who lives in Kyalami Estates, said she was willing to come to an agreement with her former husband, but he became hostile.
He demanded each and every receipt regarding the expenses of the children over the years and she managed to send him a hefty bundle, running into more than 100 pages.
Before obtaining the sequestration order, the wife obtained a writ of execution order to attach her former husband’s assets to recover the outstanding debt.
But this order could not be served on him, as he refused to give his exact residential address.
It was known that he and his present wife stayed at the upmarket Sable Hills Estate, but it was not stated at which property.
His wife’s lawyers repeatedly asked his lawyers for the exact address, but this was not forthcoming.
His wife said she wanted to spare him the embarrassment of the sheriff serving the notice on the wrong house.
She then received an e-mail from her husband, saying he was financially “down and out” and that he and his wife had gone through “hell” as they were “screwed over” by the builder of their house. He said he was about R150 000 in debt.
He said if the sheriff seized his goods to pay for his arrears in maintenance, it would result in him “being on the streets”.
Pretoria News