Former Cabinet minister Prisca Mupfumira had a bad day in court yesterday after her application to have her reporting conditions relaxed was thrown out because the lower court has no jurisdiction to alter them.
Mupfumira made the application last week through her lawyer
advocate Sylvester Hashiti. She wanted her bail reporting conditions to be reduced
from twice a week to once a month on the basis of her health condition.
The State led Mr Michael Reza opposed the application
saying Mupfumira was supposed to return back to the High Court where she was
granted bail.
In his ruling magistrate Mr Ngoni Nduna said he had no
jurisdiction to alter Mupfumira’s bail conditions as they were imposed by an
upper court.
“This court had no jurisdiction to alter the bail
conditions imposed by an upper court. I will therefore dismiss this application
for want of jurisdiction,” said Mr Nduna.
Mupfumira is facing a number of allegations where she is
separately jointly charged with former secretary for Public Service Commission
Ngoni Masoka and NSSA ex-director contribution and collections officer,
Barnabas Matongera on criminal abuse of office charges.
She is jointly charged with Masoka for allegedly concealing
a transaction from a principal involving a US$90 000 debt they got from NSSA
and reportedly purchased a Land Cruiser VX-L 200 series instead of a Mercedes
Benz.
They also reportedly ordered for the purchase of air
tickets worth US$10 215 to attend a relative’s wedding in South Africa and
paying accommodation worth R113 559 without approval.
Mupfumira is also jointly charged with National Social
Security Authority ex-director contribution and collections officer, Barnabas
Matongera, for awarding a local land development company to construct low
housing units in Gweru without the authority’s board approval and following due
tender processes. The money was allegedly paid to Drawcard Enterprises with
NSSA alleged to have committed US$6,5 million towards construction of 1 000 low
cost houses in Gweru urban.
Mupfumira and Matongera will be tried on November 18, 19
and 20. Herald
0 comments:
Post a Comment