ZIMBABWE VICE President Constantino Chiwenga has blamed High Court boss for rigging his divorce case in favour of wife Marry.
The combative general is accusing raised a complaint against Judge President George Chiweshe, the head of the High Court in Zimbabwe, of influencing court decisions in favour of his estranged wife, Marry Mubaiwa, and leaking judgments to her before they are officially handed down.
VP Chiwenga, through his lawyers Manase & Manase Legal Practitioners, has written to Justice Chiweshe demanding an explanation why the judgment in the child custody case was leaked to Mubaiwa and a local newspaper, well before judgment was handed down in court.
On Friday, the newspaper had banners all over the streets announcing Mubaiwa’s victory in the children’s custody case but the court officially handed the judgment after 1030am the same day.
“The purpose of our writing is to register our client’s complaint in the manner in which the judgment in the above matter has been handled.
“The High Court, which is headed by yourself, may have answers to the complaints raised by our client herein,” reads the letter.
Mubaiwa, according to the lawyers, is related to the Judge President and the relationship was now prejudicing VP Chiwenga in the court cases involving her estranged wife.
“Our client advises us that you are related to the applicant Ms Marry Mubaiwa and she has made numerous bald assertions in public that you are related and have sorted and influenced all matters involving her in her favour to the prejudice of our client.
“We, with respect, wish to register our client’s concern over allegations emanating from the said relationship with the applicant and complain over the conduct of the applicant in accessing court judgments and orders before they have been officially handed down to both litigants.
“These allegations are known by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), the lawyers for the applicant and various other parties which we can divulge to you in confidence,” the letter reads.
On Friday, the letter further reads, Mubaiwa went to the children’s school as early as 8am and demanded to see them while armed with a court order, well before judgment was handed down. “The applicant in this matter attended the parties’ children’s school at 8am today (Friday January 24) armed with an order of this court and stated to the school authorities that she had been granted an order by the High Court to have access to the children.
“Our client telephoned us to inquire as to whether judgment had been handed down in the matter to which we confirmed that the matter was still pending and a diligent enquiry at the registry confirmed our position,” reads the letter of complaint.
“We were then telephoned by the Honourable Justice Dube-Banda’s clerk at 0927am advising us that the Honourable judge wished to meet parties in chambers to hand down the judgment,” reads the letter.
VP Chiwenga wondered how Mubaiwa got to know of the outcome before judgment was handed down.
“Could it be that there is a new system of handing down judgments wherein litigants are given court orders before official pronouncements?
“We also wonder why the said judgment, before it was handed down, got publicised in the Independent newspaper advising the public that Marry Mubaiwa had won the case she had filed,” said VP Chiwenga’s lawyers.
The lawyers demanded an explanation within 48 hours. They argued that handing down of the judgment at 10:30am was just a formality to sanitise the illegality.
“The summoning of the parties at 10:30am, in our respectful view, was merely a formality to sanitise the blatant illegality that had occurred, more particularly that the judgment had already been publicised in the media and that applicant had used it to facilitate the taking of children from school before it was handed down.
“Our client requests that you urgently revert to us within 48 hours upon receipt of this letter as he feels the system may have been compromised,” reads the letter.
Justice Chiweshe is yet to respond to the issues raised by the VP’s lawyers.
Last week, Ms Mubaiwa won her High Court appeal for custody of the couple’s three minor children and access to the matrimonial home.
But her joy was short-lived after VP Chiwenga filed a notice of appeal at the Supreme Court, challenging the lower court’s decision.
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