Harare | Judge President Mary Zimba-Dube is now looking into a case in which High Court judge Webster Chinamora issued a verdict in a matter he never heard regarding Balwearie (Pvt) Ltd, and she has written to the company’s lawyers demanding more information.
Balwearie Holdings (Private) Limited, through its managing director Believe Guta, has since filed a case against Chinamora with Zimba-Dube.
Guta has been in police prison since November 4th, after being detained on fraud charges by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commision (Zacc) days after filing the complaint, which has been interpreted as a tactic to shield the underfire judge.
Chinamora is already under investigation, with Advocate Thabani Mpofu filing a complaint against him in February, after another attorney, Advocate Taona Nyamakura, filed a complaint against the judge for alleged conflict of interest in a legal dispute involving Zimbabwe’s Delta Beverages (Pvt) Ltd, Schweppes Zimbabwe Ltd, and Blakey Plastics (Pty) Ltd, a South African company.
A Judicial Service Commision (JSC) panel comprised of judges Anne-Marie Gowora, Alfas Chitakunye, and Custom Kachambwa convened to review the complaint decided that Chinamora had a case to answer.
Chinamora was already facing a slew of charges, including conflict of interest, judicial misconduct, bribery, and various sorts of corruption.
The JSC recommended that President Emmerson Mnangagwa establish tribunals to investigate Chinamora’s and former Bulawayo High Court judge Martin Makonese’s fitness to hold office.