Court declares key state witness in ex education minister Mutumbuka trial hostile after changing statement

Harare Magistrate Ethel Chichera yesterday declared Deeds Office supervisor Lynna Mlambo a hostile witness after she changed her earlier statement in the former education minister Dzingai Mutumbuka house scandal case.

Mlambo told police that she is the one who gave Mutumbuka’s title deed to her boyfriend Prosper Bizwark who forged the name of the owner before selling the US$600k house for US$45k.

However, on Monday she said she made the statement under duress and said she never met Bizwark.

The title deeds to the US$600 000 Chispite house in Harare was filed back after the document was altered with a forged name of the new owner, says the State.

Mlambo however, turned hostile when she made a u-turn to the statement she made to the police and said she never met the suspects.

This forced Prosecutor Zebediah Bofu to apply to the magistrate to declare Mlambo who is a key State witness, a hostile witness.

Magistrate Chichera postponed the case to Monday to make her ruling on the application.

Mlambo will be impeached which means her evidence will be disregarded.

She may also be arrested for providing false information to police.

It is the State case that Mlambo on June 22, 2021, connived with her boyfriend, Tatenda ‘Shaft’ Wakatama and two others Prosper Bizwark and Jonah Ngome who is still at large to forge Mutumbuka’s title deed 4480/88.

They forged the deed into Ngome’s name. The State says that Mlambo in a warned and cautioned statement recorded by Detective Constable Tafadzwa Marashe stated that she was Wakatama’s girlfriend.

She went on to state that she actually pulled out Mutumbuka’s deed and gave it to to her boyfriend. She further indicated that Wakatama spent a week with the deed before returning it.

State Prosecutor Kudzanai Mudzamiri had to ask for an adjournment and bring in Bofu to assist her with the application in accordance with Section 316 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act Chapter 907.

Mutumbuka who is Zimbabwe’s first Minister of Education is now based in the United States and he is being represented by Dzikamai Munyaradzi Danha who has his power of attorney.

After forging the document, the trio advertised and sold the house to Harrison Marange and his wife Demetria Zirenga for only US$140 000. They paid US$45,000 only, they got the title deeds and have since taken occupation.

The agreement of sale was prepared by lawyer Kenias Mutyasira.

When Mutumbuka got wind of the deal he reported the matter to the Police leading to the arrest of Wakatama and Bizwek in October 2021.

The case had dragged on since thenThe Registrar of Deeds is one of the witnesses and he will testify that the house belongs to Mutumbuka and indeed the title deed was forged.

Masvingo Mirror