Judgement barring our candidates was a judicial co...

Judgement barring our candidates was a judicial coup: CCC

Zim Now Writer

Opposition Citizens Coalition for Change has said the judgement by High Court Justice Isaac Muzenda, which barred its candidates from contesting in the weekend by-elections amounted to a judicial coup.

This comes after the High Court upheld an application by political activist Sengezo Tshabangu to have recalled CCC candidates expelled from the ballot. Justice Muzenda made a judgement during the midnight allegedly in the absence of CCC lawyers.

The affected candidates' lawyer Jeremiah Bamu claims he was ambushed during the night to attend a court hearing that he was not aware of. He has since protested against the judgement saying he was not instructed by his clients to represent them, hence the ruling was a nullity.

CCC argues that holding of by-elections without its candidates was tantamount to suppression and undermining of democracy.

“What is worse is a showcase of a complicit judiciary in undermining the very laws they are supposed to uphold. In a string of judicial absurdities on the eve of the by-elections, at midnight, Justice Muzenda, who contested Zanu PF primary elections in 2013, was brought from Mutare to deliver an octurnal ‘order to execute’ the Katiyo Judgement without granting CCC and it’s candidates their right to be heard through a lawyer of their choice,” party spokesperson Promise Mkwananzi said.

“Whereas the court was willing to hear ZANU PF imposters Tshabangu in the heart of the night, it refused to hear our appeal on an urgent basis with respect to the Mutevedzi Judgement."

Mkwananzi said the judgement represented a "judicial coup" and worsened the legitimacy of Zimbabwe’s elections.

"The effect of the biased judgement is a judicial coup on the concerned constituencies and a result that is illegitimate and unrepresentative of the will of the voters. This further exacerbates the ongoing legitimacy impasse stemming out of the flawed sham of the 23rd of August 2023.

"It is disturbing that the government spent a whopping US$5 million dollars conducting needless by-election only to deny citizens the choice to vote in that election further evidence of scarce financial resources poured down the drain at a time when resources are direly required to combat cholera, equip hospitals and prepare emergency measures for the forecasted severe drought.

"The ill-fated by-elections are a sham as evidenced by an unprecedented low voter turnout and unusually high number of spoilt ballots both signalling the people's anger and growing impatience against the regime's shenanigans," Mkwananzi said.

Political commentator Stephen Chan urged CCC leader Nelson Chamisa to restrategise .

"Zanu PF (of course) won 9 of the 9 by-elections over the weekend. Chamisa needs to be consulting with all the senior members of the CCC. He can't seek to strategise alone. He also needs to reach out to other opposition figures who are not members of the CCC.

In the meantime, the CCC candidates who were not permitted to run should set themselves up as 'shadow MPs' in the same way as I have always advised that the CCC should have shadow ministers. It is time to get tightly organised," he said.