Petina Gappah eats humble pie in Mahere US$1m def...

Petina Gappah eats humble pie in Mahere US$1m defamation suit

Zim Now Reporter

Zimbabwean lawyer and author Petina Gappah has issued a full retraction and apology to former Mt Pleasant legislator Fadzayi Mahere, bringing an end to a long-running defamation lawsuit.

The dispute began in September 2018 when Gappah posted tweets about Mahere, which Mahere denied and claimed caused harm to her career. Gappah admitted to making the statements and has now retracted them, offering a full apology.

“Advocate Mahere considered my statements to be untruthful, defamatory and injurious to her. Consequently, she launched legal action against me for causing ‘irreparable harm’ to her political career, her career as a civil society activist and to her career as an advocate.

“In order to bring a conclusive end to the legal action, I hereby fully and unequivocally retract all the statements that I made about her, both on Twitter and in subsequent legal pleadings, and tender a full, public and unreserved apology to Advocate Mahere for any pain, hurt or distress that were caused by my statements.

“I wish Advocate Mahere continued success in her political career, her career as a civil society activist and her career as an advocate,” she said.

Gappah also pledged to donate to a charity of Mahere’s choosing as a demonstration of her good faith, sincerity, and regret.

“As a demonstration of my good faith, sincerity and regret, I undertake to make a donation in Advocate Mahere’s name to the charity of her choice. It is my sincere hope that this full retraction and apology brings finality and closure to this matter,” she said.

The lawsuit had been ongoing since 2018, with Gappah’s legal team filing a recusal application in March, which was dismissed by High Court Judge Joseph Mafusire. The judge criticised Gappah’s legal team for their role in the application, stating that they had “unjustifiably gone personal” and “twisted facts”.