Pearl Mbewe, the wife of veteran South African actor Sello Maake kaNcube, has openly accused him of misinforming the public about his HIV diagnosis and exposing her to the infection. 

Mbewe’s comment comes after kaNcube’s recent interview with the Sunday Times, in which he revealed his HIV-positive status, which was discovered last year as the couple was trying to conceive their first child.

In a candid interview with Sunday Word, Mbewe detailed her experience, revealing a timeline that contradicts kaNcube’s account. She stated that they began having unprotected sex after kaNcube assured her he was HIV negative, having recently received a negative test result.

“Three months after breaking up with the father of my kid, I went to test because I did not want to find myself carrying a child of my ex or jumping into another relationship without knowing my HIV status. My pregnancy and HIV results came out negative. So when he told me that he too was negative, I naively believed him,” she explained.

Mbewe described their attempts to conceive a child, a desire shared by both of them.

“We bonked like rabbits on steroids after we tied the knot because he told me that he wanted to have a child born in wedlock, saying all his other children were born outside matrimony. I also wanted to make him an heir, more so because he was my husband and I loved him to bits,” she said.

Their efforts, however, proved unsuccessful, leading them to seek fertility treatment.

The couple consulted a gynaecologist who, after conducting various tests, suggested they undergo HIV testing to rule out any contributing factors to their infertility. Crucially, Mbewe stated this testing occurred in 2021, not 2023 as kaNcube had previously claimed.

“When the results came back two or three days later, the gynaecologist phoned him and told him that he wanted to see him to discuss the results. He then asked the gynaecologist to tell him on the phone. The gynaecologist then broke the news to him and told him that his results came back positive. My husband then asked about my results, and the gynaecologist told him that he will share the results with me. By God’s grace my results were negative,” Mbewe recounted.

Despite her own negative test results, Mbewe acknowledged feeling traumatized and anxious after learning of her husband’s diagnosis. She questioned his honesty regarding his previous negative test. Subsequent visits with the gynaecologist looked into IVF options, including egg harvesting. The gynaecologist instructed kaNcube to start antiretroviral therapy to lower his viral load.

Mbewe actively assisted her husband in finding an HIV specialist in Sandton. Further tests confirmed kaNcube’s positive status, revealing a viral load of approximately 7000 and a CD4 count of 200. The specialist warned of the serious health consequences if treatment wasn’t started immediately and cautioned Mbewe about the risk of infection if unprotected sex continued. The couple has since used protection.

Mbewe detailed the subsequent events, including further testing to determine if kaNcube’s viral load was undetectable and non-transmittable. She stated that despite the significant investment in IVF (over R150,000), their relationship deteriorated.

“It was only last year that we tested to check his viral load and establish that it was not detectable and transmittable. He then indicated that since we paid over R150 000 for the IVF, we must proceed with treatment because he desperately wanted a child with me. But then, since the tests, he started acting weird and telling me that I’m arrogant, assertive and was not submitting to him because ‘I have special genes’,” she explained.

Mbewe directly addressed kaNcube’s public statements, accusing him of seeking sympathy while misrepresenting the facts. She stated that her negative HIV status, rather than being a source of joy, became a point of contention in their relationship, leading to accusations of arrogance and assertiveness from her husband.

“My sin and the downfall of our marriage was because, ‘unfortunately’, I didn’t contract the virus. If I had also tested positive, my estranged husband would not have started showing signs of envy towards me and telling me that I’m the only ‘special woman’ he has slept with in the recent years because ‘I have special genes’,” she said.

She concluded with a strong statement: “Sello must stop lying and soliciting public sympathy in my name. I have all the proof to [refute] all his lies. Not in my name!”