Former minister, Ignatius Chombo has revealed that he is battling cancer and needs to get treatment. But a Harare magistrate has has dismi...
Former minister, Ignatius Chombo has revealed that he is
battling cancer and needs to get treatment. But a Harare magistrate has has dismissed
his application for the temporary release of his passport.
Magistrate Estere Chivasa said :“The court cannot simply
release the passport merely because the applicant has cancer. He made
prosecution impossible, legally though, at the time when the State indicated
that they are ready for trial and now he is requesting his passport
persistently on the basis of an outdated document which militates against release
of the passport on the changed circumstances.
“It is not in dispute that the applicant was diagnosed with
cancer. A perusal of the doctor’s letter reveal apparent challenges as far as
the requirements of the present application is concerned. Firstly, the
applicant is relying on a document which is dated February 2019, we are now in
July and that on its own presents a challenge in that it is the document that
was relied upon in the previous application and legally, there is no change in
circumstances.
“While their reasons for not attending court are not known,
this court cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that there is a trend to abuse
the indulgence. The applicant is not being punished for other people’s sins but
considering the nature of these applications and that they are informal, my
view is that the interests of justice are paramount."
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