Judge Justice Siyabona Musithu said Mugodhi’s appointment
as bishop was unconstitutional, and nullified all the actions he partook in. The
court reinstated Aaron Munodawafa as the substantive bishop.
H Metro reports that Munodawafa faction had accused Mugodhi
of not abiding by the church constitution. Their constitution stated that in
the event of the death of a bishop, his or her deputy assumes the leadership
role.
“Whether Aaron Munodawafa is the bishop of the church it is
common cause that at the time the meeting of August 10, 2019 was held, Aaron
Munodawafa was the most senior vice Bishop.
“He is said to have
become old and frail and therefore incapacitated to hold office in the capacity
of Bishop or vice Bishop.
“Following the death of Bishop Mugodhi on 14 October 2019,
Munodawafa was the first senior vice Bishop who was earmarked to take over the
reins of Bishop in terms of the church’s constitution.
“His participation in the proceedings was therefore
essential. The court agrees with the submission by the plaintiffs’ counsel that
Munodawafa’s state of health did not disqualify him from ascending to the
position of Bishop in terms of the church’s constitution.”
“The parties have been in and out of court on diverse
occasions. The dispute concerning the legitimate leadership of the church
remained unresolved in all those legal skirmishes.
“The matters as consolidated therefore raised an important
legal question that the parties had long evaded during their lengthy legal
voyage. An order of costs on the punitive scale is therefore unjustified.
“It is therefore declared that the second defendant is the
substantive Bishop of the first defendant in terms of its constitution.
“The third defendant is the Vice Bishop of the first defendant in terms of its constitution.”
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