Kudzayi vs. Sharpe: Power Challenged

Philemon Jambaya

Zim Now Editor

An explosive investigative report by journalist Edmund Kudzayi has unveiled a disturbing pattern of alleged judicial malfeasance, centered around businessman Ken Sharpe and his vast network of influence. The report, a follow-up to an earlier exposé on Sharpe's company, Augur Investments, delves into a series of alleged manipulations of the legal system, raising serious questions about the integrity of Zimbabwe's institutions.

Kudzayi's investigation, which began with an examination of Sharpe's "astonishing record of 40 uninterrupted court victories," took a dramatic turn when he himself became a target. "I found myself at the centre of a whirlwind of contradictions and outright fabrications," Kudzayi writes, recounting a frantic call from a friend who informed him that national media outlets, including The Herald and ZBC, were reporting he was a fugitive accused of extortion. "The absurdity was staggering. I was at home, yet national media, including The Herald and ZBC, breathlessly announced that I was a fugitive accused of extorting Ken Sharpe. The police had not even attempted to contact me," he states.

Kudzayi alleges that this was not mere reporting but an "orchestrated hit," claiming to have obtained evidence that prosecutor Anesu Chirenje instructed journalists to "make it juicy" and requested links to their published reports. "What could compel the police to misrepresent in court papers that I was on the run when they had never sought to contact me? What would prompt a prosecutor to instruct journalists to amplify a case before it had even been tested in court? What would drive ZBC to claim someone was a fugitive without seeking their comment?" Kudzayi asks.

The report highlights a series of contradictions in Sharpe's statements, particularly regarding a payment made to Kudzayi. "Ken Sharpe initially told the police he had been extorted. Yet in court, he claimed the payment was voluntary. It is logically impossible for both statements to be true," Kudzayi asserts. He further points to the role of a Herald Reporter, who allegedly led a "vilification" campaign against him and Sharpe's former business partner. "Whether he did so of his own accord or under instruction is unclear, but what is indisputable is that the same journalist has been responsible for a steady stream of attacks against Mr Sharpe's former business partner," Kudzayi writes.

The report then focuses on the case of Roy Nyabvure, a City of Harare Chief Building Inspector, whose ordeal exposes what Kudzayi describes as the "brutal mechanics of how power operates with impunity." Nyabvure was arrested after verifying the legitimacy of building plans, a move that made him a key state witness against Sharpe. "That single act—stating the truth—sealed his fate as it made him a key state witness against Sharpe, a key state witness whose testimony had to be silenced by any means necessary," Kudzayi explains.

The report alleges that Tatiana Aleshina, a Ukrainian executive with Sharpe's firm, actively interfered with Nyabvure's case. "It was a blatant attempt to interfere with a legal case. Nyabvure refused. Shortly thereafter, he was arrested," Kudzayi writes. Nyabvure was imprisoned for 45 days, during which he suffered gravely ill health. "It is difficult to justify why a non-violent, elderly man required three armed guards. This was not legitimate policing; it was intimidation—an attempt to break his spirit and coerce him into submission," Kudzayi asserts.

The report raises several critical questions about the alleged influence Sharpe wields over the legal system. "How does a man on trial for demolition fraud manipulate the courts to arrest his own witness? How does a businessman secure 40 uninterrupted victories in Zimbabwean courts?" Kudzayi asks. He also questions the roles of magistrates, prosecutors, and the police in Nyabvure's case, suggesting "active collusion—the deliberate use of state institutions to shield the powerful and punish the inconvenient."

Kudzayi concludes that the "alignment between media, prosecution, and law enforcement in matters concerning Mr Sharpe is not incidental—it is systemic." He asserts that the case of Roy Nyabvure reveals "the brutal mechanics of how power operates with impunity," and that "when truth becomes criminal and justice becomes a commodity, we are no longer witnessing the failures of a system. We are observing its deliberate perversion."