Zimbabwe: State Seeks to Revoke Mamombe Bail

The State yesterday applied for revocation of bail for MDC-Alliance legislator Joana Mamombe after she failed to report to police on Friday last week.

Her legal team claims that she was delayed by the curfew after travelling to collect her young sister for school and reported the following morning at 9am.

Mr Michael Reza, appearing for the State, told the court that the condition was one of those imposed when Mamombe was granted bail when jointly charged with Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova on allegations of violating the Covid-19 lockdown measures after staging an illegal demonstration in Harare sometime last year and of participating in an illegal demonstration.

Mr Reza sought to hand in an affidavit from the police who would have checked Mamombe when she reported in. This morning a police officer handed in an affidavit saying she had breached her reporting conditions. On August 27, 2021 she was supposed to report to the police and she did not. Officers at CID Law and Order prepared the affidavit and we apply to tender the affidavit, he said.

Mamombe, through her lawyer, Mr Jeremiah Bamu, who appeared together with Mr Alec Muchadehama, opposed the tendering of the affidavit to court saying it was not commissioned by an independent commissioner.

Mr Bamu argued that officers at CID Law and Order had both prepared the affidavit and commissioned it, and that rendered the affidavit defective.

Harare regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje agreed with Mr Bamu and refused to accept the affidavit as evidence, ruling that the detectives at CID Law and Order were interested parties and could not commission an affidavit they had prepared.

The State then led evidence from detective Arimon Mbirimo who told the court that Mamombe failed to report to police on the day in question. He told the court that although Mamombe reported to police at 9am the following day, it was against the court order.

Asked during cross-examination by Mr Bamu, whether he was aware that Mamombe had travelled to her rural home to pick up her sister who was supposed to start school on Monday and failed to travel back because of the curfew regulations, detective Mirimbo said he was not aware as he was not the one who attended to her when she visited the police station on the following day.

The matter is expected to continue on Friday with the State making its submissions on their application for revocation of Mamombe's bail.

This article originally appeared on The Herald

Photo: Zimpapers Images