JUDGES yesterday all but confirmed long-held claims of judicial capture, in a letter to President Emmerson Mnangagwa complaining of interference in the discharge of their duties by Chief Justice Luke Malaba.
The letter, dated October 26, comes after High Court judge
Justice Erica Ndewere, who is battling suspension over allegations of gross
incompetence, claimed in court papers that she was being victimised for
refusing to take orders from Chief Justice Malaba to deny former Tourism
minister Priscah Mupfumira and MDC Alliance deputy chairman Job Sikhala bail.
In the latter, signed off as “Your long suffering judges”
and copied to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission and the Attorney-General
Prince Machaya, the judges said the Chief Justice was interfering with their
work and judgments.
They said they were now operating in fear of being
victimised.
“What is repeated in the public domain and on social media
about the capture of the Judiciary is no longer fiction or perception, it is in
fact reality,” the letter read in part.
The letter also accused Chief Justice Malaba of interfering
with decisions made by magistrates through the office of the Chief Magistrate.
“At the superior courts, it is an open secret that judges
no longer enjoy any respect and that administrative staff now spy on judges and
report to the various registrars, who in turn make reports to the Judicial
Service Commission secretariat for onward reporting to the Chief Justice,” the
letter read in part.
The judges said they had lost trust in their supporting
staff, describing them as spies. They claimed they were resorting to hiding their
judgments for fear of being directed to change them.
According to the judges, they are being pushed into making
“safe” judgments to protect their jobs, a claim that confirmed fears of
interference and capture of the Judiciary often raised mainly by the opposition
MDC Alliance and activists.
Prosecutors, the judges claimed, have become the “new
judicial officers” and report to structures outside the court processes.
“Any attempts to protect the interests of accused persons
and other litigants are promptly reported to the Chief Justice’s office, who
thereafter directs heads of the various courts/divisions to investigate these.
“Judges are, therefore, now so afraid of their own jobs
that they consciously and subconsciously make decisions that they consider
‘safe’, even if these do not accord with the law,” the letter read in part.
Chief Justice Malaba, the judges alleged, is interfering
with judgments by ordering judges to rewrite judgments, adding that no judgment
is passed without his approval.
“It is an open secret that no Supreme Court judgment can be
delivered without the Chief Justice’s approval,” the judges allege.
“It is also an open secret and a source of much disquiet
that all draft judgments in the Supreme Court are circulated among all the
judges, including those who did not hear arguments on the matter. Judges who
did not hear arguments on a particular case can influence the result without
having even read the record.”
Chief Justice Malaba touched off a storm in July after he
ordered all High Court and Labour Court judges to submit their judgments for
approval before they were handed down. He was forced to reverse the directive
after an outcry from international jurists.
The judges also complained of their conditions of service,
arguing that they were receiving “worthless” Real Time Gross Settlement fuel
coupons, forcing their drivers to “burn more fuel” in search of garages
accepting local coupons.
On salaries, the judges said even newly-qualified lawyers
now earn more than them, making it impossible to properly dispense justice as
they are now “constantly worrying about day-to-day family issues”.
Several allegations were made by the judges which the
NewsDay could not immediately verify.
Presidential spokesperson George Charamba could not confirm
nor deny the authenticity of the letter to his boss, saying: “We don’t comment
on such issues.”
Pressed further, Charamba said: “I would have commented if
I say anything on that.”
Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs permanent
secretary Virginia Mabiza said: “The letter is unsigned and also presented in a
language that is not consistent with judicial language.
“I am suspicious it could be emanating from street
activists. Our judges have integrity and cannot stoop to such levels. It would
appear someone is scandalising the Judiciary. Anyway, it happens in a
democratic society,” Mabiza said.
Mabiza later promised a detailed response on the matter,
which had not been sent through by last night.
During a question-and-answer session in Parliament
yesterday, Sikhala asked Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi what government was
doing about allegations of judicial interference.
“Section 164 of the Constitution guarantees the
independence of the Judiciary in our country,” Sikhala said, referring to the
letter by the judges.
“What is your ministry doing, vis-a-vis issues of
interference on the judicial officers in the country, so that you reassure the
public that members of the Judiciary are, indeed, independent and that you will
continue supporting their independence?”
But Ziyambi denied the allegations of judicial
interference, saying judicial officers were free to do their work without fear
of victimisation. He also said the law provided judges with security of
employment.
“I would also like Sikhala to fashion me with specific
cases so that I can then study how there is interference in the functions of
our Judiciary,” Ziyambi said. Newsday
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