Acting Prosecutor-General Kumbirai Hodzi is today set to be sworn-in as the substantive head of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) despite reports that he came out a distant number six during interviews conducted by the Judicial Services Commission (JSC).
BY XOLISANI NCUBE
Hodzi, who took over the post in acting capacity following the resignation of Ray Goba, would be sworn-in today after Mnangagwa settled for him ahead of three front-runners who were rejected for various reasons, among them politics.
“The swearing-in (ceremony) is set for 8:30am tomorrow (today). Hodzi won the lottery. He has the backing of Virginia Mabiza, who is a strong ally of the President,” a senior government official said.
Attempts to get a comment from Mabiza were unsuccessful as she claimed to be in a noisy place and promised to call back.
“I can’t hear you, let me call back or you call after 10 minutes,” she said.
Following the completion of public interviews in November last year, the JSC submitted names of the top three performers to Mnangagwa for consideration as required by the law, with former principal law officer Calvin Mantsebo topping the list of 10 candidates.
Mantsebo is the director of intelligence, investigations and prosecution at the Anti-Corruption Commission of Sierra Leone.
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He was followed by former student activist Tinomudaishe Chinyoka and former president of the Law Society of Zimbabwe, Misheck Hogwe.
The other seven participants to the interviews were former Deputy Prosecutor-General Florence Ziyambi, former MDC legislator Jessie Majome, former Bulawayo High Court judge Maphios Cheda, former principal law officer in the Justice ministry Noria Mashumba, as well as Harare lawyers Edmund Marondedze and Wendy Chingeya. Mnangagwa, sources said, ruled out Mantsebo — the top performer during the public interviews — on the basis that very little was known about him, while Chinyoka was discredited for his previous association with the opposition MDC.
