Lloyd Shunje

MUTARE – The Minister of State for Minicaland Provincial Affairs, Monica Mutsvangwa has pleaded with government to deploy more magistrates in the province to ensure quicker justice delivery to the people.
Speaking at the official opening of a High Court building in Mutare, Mutsvangwa told Vice President Constantine Chiwenga, who was the guest of honour in his capacity as Acting President, and Chief Justice Luke Malaba that there was a serious backlog at the magistrates’ court.
“Allow me to register the province’s concern over shortage of magistrates. I am told there are only three magistrates at the Mutare Magistrates’ Court including the provincial magistrate who is also involved in administrative work.
“The three court houses in Nyanga, Mutasa and Murambinda have two court rooms each but only one magistrate, leaving the other court room idle, something we do not wish to happen as the majority of the cases of our people are heard at these courts,” said Mutsvangwa.
In response, Chiwenga acknowledged the problems, saying government was aware and will work to make the issue urgent.
“Yes I am aware that there are challenges of staffing which occasionally receives assistance from Harare. I want the Ministry of Justice, in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance and the Judicial Service Commission to work towards solving this matter,” said Chiwenga.
The newly-opened High Court, which was formally a cinema house, becomes the fourth permanent High Court in the country after those in Harare, Bulawayo and Masvingo.local

…Nyakunhuwa chieftainship still plagued by conflict

ZAKA – Preparations for the appointment and installations of substantive Chief Bota are being done to avoid a leadership vacuum following the expiry of the permissible period that an area can stay with an acting chief, TellZim News has learnt.
The case is, however, different with the Nyakunhuwa throne which is still being claimed by many royal families with no indication of a possible compromise any time soon.
TellZim News learnt that the Bota royal families had agreed that it was the turn of the Bwazvo family to take the throne.
Zaka District Administrator (DA) Ndeya Nyede confirmed the development saying the long-running feud on who should take over from the late Chiyo Mugabe who died in 2016 had finally been solved and papers will soon be send the provincial chiefs’ council.
“The families have agreed that the chieftaincy will go to the Bwazvo family and we will forward our deliberations to the provincial chiefs’ council for approval. If everything gets approved, we would then move on to the next stage,” said Nyede.
However, the situation is different in Nyakunhuwa, where the DA and the chief’s council, chaired by Chief Nemauzhe of Chivi, held a fruitless meeting with the Nyakunhuwa clansmen.
Disagreements were centred on which family should take the chieftainship which was left with no leaders after the death of Jerera Wafawanaka Mashavave in a car accident in 2015.
“We met with the families but we have not resolved anything so far. We have, however, managed to pick up some points which we are going to use in our next meeting. They were disowning each other but it is common when dealing with matters of chieftainships,” said Nyede.
Recently, the Mutonhori family which, if papers from the National Archives seen by TellZim News are anything to go by, has never sat on the throne, petitioned the DA over the overstaying of Courage Jerera, who is the acting chief.
The papers indicate the Mashavave family sat on the throne three times, the Mutsvangwa family held it twice while the Murembwa and Mututuvari families took it once each.local

MPANDAWANA – A Gutu woman recently fainted and went into a coma for about an hour at the Gutu Magistrates’ Court while waiting for a case of assault involving her daughter’s ex-boyfriend to be heard.
People who were at the court had to carry Zvidzai Gonese into one of her relative’s vehicle and transport her to Gutu Rural Hospital for assistance to bring her back to consciousness.
Eyewitnesses said Zvidzai had accompanied her daughter Ruvimbo Gonese who was supposed to attend a case reported against Calvin Munhamo who had allegedly assaulted Ruvimbo and threatened to shoot her.
Sources said the woman fainted after learning that her daughter intended to withdraw all charges and tell the court that they were fake, having been made simply as a result of pressure from her parents.
“She was shocked to learn that her daughter had planned to turn against her and make a fool out of her in court. She was distraught and shaken. Unbeknown to her, Ruvimbo had secretly been communicating with Calvin through a new sim card and they had hatched a plan to set him free,” said a source.
Zvidzai acknowledged in an interview TellZim News that she had been upset to hear that her own daughter had turned against her when all she was trying to do was help her.
“I was surprised after Calvin’s lawyer, Philip Marava told me that Ruvimbo had sent messages to Calvin saying I had forced her to make-up the allegations and that the messages were going to be used as evidence in court. I was really disturbed,” said Zvidzai.local

Edwin Marecha

Nyasha Marumbi

Councillor Decent Chikunya of Bikita Ward 17 appeared in the Masvingo Magistrates’ Court on Monday for contravening Public Order and Security Act (POSA) Amendment Number 18 of 2017 Chapter 11:17, ‘conveying a meeting without notifying the police or regulating authority’.
It is the State’s case that on March 18, Chikunya who is a MDC-T member, unlawfully convened a political meeting in Bikita East at Mukamba where meetings are often held.
It is on that same day Zanu PF supporters intended to hold a sanctioned meeting.
A Zanu PF member, Chipiwa Chipare, of Nerunhengo village, who is the complainant, reported the case to the police.
The police came but found MDC -T members dispersing from the venue which led to the arrest of Chikunya.
Magistrate Langton Ndokera postponed the case to May 29 for continuation of trial.
Fidelicy Nyamukondiwa represented the State.local