THREE inmates, who were sharing the same cell with suspended Harare mayor Jacob Mafume at Harare Remand Prison succumbed to COVID-19, a court heard yesterday.
This was revealed by Mafume’s lawyer Tendai Biti while
applying for the postponement of hearing for bail revocation bid by the State
which was set for yesterday.
Biti told the court that Mafume was supposed to be
quarantined on a medical doctor’s recommendation after three of his cellmates
succumbed to COVID-19. Following the doctor’s recommendations, Mafume did not
attend court yesterday.
Prosecutor Charles Muchemwa consented to Biti’s request.
State prosecutors submitted an application for the court to
revoke bail granted to Mafume on the matter in which the mayor is accused of
illegally parcelling out land, on the basis that he wilfully violated his bail
conditions by interfering with Edgar Dzehonye, whom he knew was a key witness
in his matter.
Mafume was granted $40 000 bail at the High Court last
Friday on a charge of attempting to bribe a key witness.
He had been released on $30 000 bail at the High Court a
few days before he was arrested for obstructing or defeating the course of
justice.
Biti’s application came at a time human rights defenders
have expressed concern over issues of the congestion of detainees in Zimbabwean
prisons, as well as lack of adequate medical care facilities to protect them
from COVID-19.
Mafume reportedly fell sick while on remand prison, and had
to call a private doctor to assess his condition.
Incarcerated journalist Hopewell Chin’ono also narrated the
deplorable sanitary conditions in remand prison when he appeared before
magistrate Lazini Ncube recently on charges of communicating falsehoods.
Chin’ono had requested to be isolated from other inmates
since he had been in contact with COVID-19 positive people.
He complained in court that the prison officers had failed
to comply, putting lives of other inmates at risk.
MDC Alliance spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere, who is facing
similar charges to Chin’ono’s, also told magistrate Trynos Wutawashe that
sanitary conditions in cells made it difficult for inmates to comply with
hygienic practices recommended to curb the spread of COVID-19. Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment