FORMER First Lady Grace Mugabe yesterday filed a High Court application seeking to challenge an order by a Chinhoyi magistrate to exhume the remains of her late husband, former President Robert Mugabe for reburial at the National Heroes Acre, arguing that the lower court had no jurisdiction over such cases.
This was after Chinhoyi provincial magistrate Ruth Moyo
recently dismissed an appeal by Mugabe’s daughter, Bona Chikore, against
exhumation of the late former leader’s remains.
In her application yesterday, Grace argued that the
magistrate had no authority to deliver a ruling based on an appeal by her
children if she felt they had no legal authority to file the appeal in the
first place.
Moyo had dismissed the appeal by Bona and her siblings,
Robert Jnr and Chatunga, against Chief Zvimba (Stanley Mhondoro), saying Grace
was the one with legal authority to file the appeal.
Grace submitted to the High Court that on June 2, 2021, she
wrote to Moyo after Chief Zvimba in May ordered that her husband’s remains be
exhumed and reburied at the National Heroes Acre.
Moyo ordered that she files a court application which would
be dealt with in terms of proper procedure, and of which she did through her
daughter, Bona.
Grace is now seeking an order to nullify the magistrate’s
ruling saying it was not fair.
“I am advised that the procedure that the first respondent
directed is not in terms of the law, specifically that I prepare an application
for review. The wrongful directive by the provincial magistrate and her clear
neglect of duties is prejudicial to me in that it violates my right to equal
protection before the law. I wish to direct the court’s attention to the fact
that this matter involves the former President of the Republic of Zimbabwe and
to that end, has attracted so much public attention and put the Zimbabwean
courts under unnecessary spotlight,” Grace submitted.
“Her subsequent refusal to review the community court’s decision
is an indication of her unpreparedness or unwillingness to dispose of the
matter and that is clearly infringing on my constitutionally entrenched right
to a fair hearing. I implore this honourable court to exercise its inherent
judicial powers to correct and guide provincial magistrates who might find
themselves in the situation of Moyo, particularly when matters of national
interest as the present one have arisen.”
Grace urged the High Court to conduct a review of Chief
Zvimba’s directive as Moyo had shown that she had no interest in dealing with
the matter.
She said the proceedings at the community court were a
nullity on the basis of improper service of summons.
Grace further urged the court to hear the application on an
urgent basis, as the matter was tormenting her.
“I am advised that the appeal process can take within six
months to even two years depending on how inundated the High Court will be to
accommodate appeals,” she said.
“This delay in time will be gravely unfair on me and my
family as we have to be subjected under intense mental torture each day with
the uncertainty of the resting place of my late husband and the former
President of Zimbabwe.”
She cited Moyo and Chief Zvimba as respondents. Newsday
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