Wednesday, 10th March 2010

Photos Howzit Last evening I spent a little time getting an idea as to the scope of what I can only describe as 'damage' to this page and I am staggered at just how much of it is missing. The postings remain within the make-up of the blog, but are unavailable to the public. I don't know why or how Blogger has decided to strip daily postings from a page such as this, and I feel I am now writing postings that will have a limited lifespan. Hence, there will be some serious changes to this page in the coming weeks, and there will be a move to a new url... I will attempt to keep you all informed. -o00o- Yesterday afternoon I met with my surgeon and he and I looked at new x-rays of the arm and he indicated that he was very happy with the progress and I was able to throw the brace with a 90 degree elbow away! I will be sent to the Orthotic Department for new leather braces to be made up to accommodate the new profile of my arm, and I see the surgeon again in six months. I am very happy about this. -o00o- Even when he won his parliamentary seat in Tsholotsho, Jonathan Moyo was a known Mugabe sympathiser and agitator. He won the seat by pretending to be something he is not, following his being chucked out of the Zanu PF party. So there was no surprise when the only independent member of the Zimbabwean parliament went back to the loving arms of the Mugabe faithful. Perhaps the only surprise for him was the failure by Mugabe to appoint him a member of the Politburo - the decision making caucus of the party. Moyo filed a suit against the parliament regarding the election of the MDC's Lovemore Moyo as the Speaker of the House. " High court judge Bharat Patel dismissed the application by former information minister Jonathan Moyo, who claimed that the election of Speaker Lovemore Moyo was flawed. "The applicants have failed to establish any justification, either as regards the general conduct of the impugned election or with respect to the secrecy of the votes cast or otherwise, for setting aside or nullifying the election of the Speaker of the House of assembly," Patel said in his ruling. "The application is dismissed," the judge said. " This ruling will not amuse Moyo who is doing everything in his power to ingratiate himself to Mugabe. And another article in the press indicates that the legal costs to Moyo will be fairly substantial. " Former minister Moyo filed the challenge in 2008 to contest the election of Lovemore Moyo, the first parliamentary Speaker not from Mugabe's party. Jonathan Moyo had argued in court that the voting was chaotic and disorderly. " Moyo said that the Mdc were showing their ballot papers to each other, and based upon that, he was of the contention that the ballot was not secret... -o00o- Staying with the courts, but in an altogether much more serious case, Attorney General, Johannes Tomana has closed the State case against senior Mdc official Roy Bennett, accused with planning to assassinate Mugabe and providing funds to purchase weapons to carry out that plan. " As soon as the State said it had no further witnesses to call the defence argued that the evidence that had been presented so far by the prosecution was not sufficient for the case to proceed, and that their client had no case to answer. Bennett’s legal team said that the prosecution had failed to prove a link between their client and Peter Hitschmann - who was the State’s key witness. Lead defence lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa also pointed out that Bennett’s co-accused, Hitschmann, was in 2006 acquitted of the same charges facing Bennett. " Mugabe will not back down and is determined to nail Roy Bennett in this case, but isn't it pushing it just a little far when he is being charged essentially with a repealed section of the Public Order And Security Act (POSA), and that if the State was unable to prove the same case against Hitschmann then the same would more than likely apply to Bennett. When a part of a law is 'repealed', it is cancelled officially'. How can the State attempt to charge Bennett with a crime that doesn't exist? Unsurprisingly, Bennett's lawyer immediately applied for a discharge. " So we made an application in the court that the case against Mr Bennett be dismissed before he gives his evidence, because in our view there was no need for him to stand against something that has not yet implicated him," said another of his lawyers, Trust Maanda. Mtetwa made an application for a discharge at the close of the State’s case, which was immediately opposed by the prosecutor. The court is expected to hear the prosecutor’s opposition to the defence application on Wednesday. Maanda told SW Radio Africa that Wednesday’s hearing will be a continuation of the State’s argument, after which the court will say it needs time to look at the submissions and then make a decision. " Masanda has a point. If the State has closed its case, how can they continue their case in opposition to the application? " He said at that point, if the judge accepts that there is no case against Bennett, he will be acquitted. But if the judge agrees with the State then the matter will proceed and Bennett and his witnesses will take to the stand. " -o000- " Whange is chaired by Zanu PF stalwart and businessman, Tendai Savanhu, who is Phillip Chiyangwa's cousin. Savanhu also sits on the board of Zeco Holdings Limited (Zeco), a Phillip Chiyangwa empire listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE).

Share

Full Story: Wednesday, 10th March 2010»

Compare Coverage

• Biti to present 2010 Budget Wednesday Zimbabwe News Story: Biti to present 2010 Budget Wednesday - Daily News Zimbabwe - 01.12.09
• Wednesday, 13th January 2010 Zimbabwe News Story: Wednesday, 13th January 2010 - The Bearded Man - 13.01.10
• Tuesday, 2nd March 2010 Zimbabwe News Story: Tuesday, 2nd March 2010 - The Bearded Man - 02.03.10
• Bill Watch 8th March Zimbabwe News Story: Bill Watch 8th March - SW Radio Africa - 09.03.10
• Tuesday, 09 March 2010 Zimbabwe News Story: Tuesday, 09 March 2010 - The Bearded Man - 09.03.10
• Tiesday, 10th November 2009 Zimbabwe News Story: Tiesday, 10th November 2009 - The Bearded Man - 11.11.09