EXILED former Cabinet minister Saviour Kasukuwere has filed an application seeking the cancellation of his warrant of arrest to allow him to contest in the August 23 presidential race.
The warrant of arrest was issued on January 17, 2019.
In early 2020, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA)
sought extradition of Kasukuwere from South Africa but failed after Interpol
claimed the issue was political.
Kasukuwere has shown his intention to challenge for the
presidency.
The warrant was issued by retired Harare magistrate Hosea
Mujaya after the former Cabinet minister in the late President Robert Mugabe’s
administration failed to appear for trial on four counts of criminal abuse of
office.
In his application, which was filed on June 2, Kasukuwere,
through his lawyers, Mhishi and Nkomo Legal Practitioners, said the warrant was
issued in error.
According to his lawyers, Kasukuwere appeared before Mujaya
on November 29, 2018 to answer to four counts of criminal abuse of duty.
The former Cabinet minister then took exception to the
charges saying they lacked essential elements of the offence of criminal abuse
of duty.
Mujaya, however, dismissed the application and Kasukuwere
approached the High Court for review of Mujaya’s decision.
The High Court ruled in his favour.
After upholding Kasukuwere’s application for exception, the
High Court then ordered that the warrant of arrest issued by the lower court be
cancelled by Mujaya who issued it.
“It is accordingly submitted that the applicant
(Kasukuwere) has managed to show on a balance of probabilities that the warrant
of arrest should be cancelled. It serves no purpose for it to remain in force,”
Kasukuwere’s lawyers submitted.
“It was rendered void by the High Court in a judgment.”
Kasukuwere was one of the leading persons in a faction
known as Generation40 (G40) during Mugabe’s era. Newsday
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