MARONDERA magistrate Shane Kubonera has denied giving a biased verdict in the witchcraft case involving former Education minister Aeneas Chigwedere and his son Mangwiza.
BY Jairos Saunyama
Mangwiza had taken his father to court accusing him and his second wife Emilia Zharare of keeping goblins with which they used to bewitch other family members, but Kubonera dismissed the matter, saying the courts had no jurisdiction to preside over such a spiritual matter.
This did not go down well with Mangwiza, who last month applied for a review of the matter at the High Court, accusing Kubonera of being biased.
“I stated in my ruling that the relief sought is premised more on the spiritual realm, a realm which the court cannot even tap into. Applicant’s action or suit revolved around witch-finding which is non-natural. I was cognisant of the Customary Law and Local Courts Act (Chapter 7:05) when I passed a ruling in the matter, but same did not apply at all in this case,” Kubonera said.
In his application for review under case number HC 3401/16, Mangwiza argued that Kubonera erred by applying general law instead of customary law in coming up with the verdict. He argued that Kubonera should not have dismissed the matter because Subsection 3 of the Customary Law and Local Courts Act Chapter 7:05 was supposed to be considered in the application of customary law.
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In his response, Kubonera said that he ruled under the guidance of the Magistrates’ Court Act (Chapter 7:10).
“The magistrates court is a creature of a statute and it is accordingly governed by the Magistrates’ Courts Act (Chapter 7:10). Section 11 of the same Act stipulates instances where the magistrates’ court has jurisdiction over civil matters, whether determinable under general law of Zimbabwe or under customary law. In my legal opinion, the above said relief sought by the applicant was an order for specific performance without an alternative of payment of damages or a declaratory order.
“The magistrates’ court is proscribed from having jurisdiction in any action or suit wherein the specific performance of an Act is sought without an alternative of payment of damages or a declaratory order in terms of Section 14(1) (d) and Section 14 (1)(g) of the Magistrates’ Court Act (Chapter 7:10) respectively.”
Mangwiza was seeking permission from the courts to allow traditional healers to conduct a cleansing ceremony and remove the alleged goblins from the ex-minister’s homestead.