Harare Man Successfully Sues Police, Home Affairs Minister Kazembe Escapes Jail, Pays $200K Lawsuit.

Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage minister Kazembe Kazembe has averted 60 days imprisonment for contempt of court after the magistrate Tilda Mazhande gave the minister a two-week ultimatum to compensate a victim of police brutality or he would have to serve.

Sources within the ministry said such suits are common as some overzealous police officers are breaking the law forcing the government through the ministry to be at the receiving end of lawsuits.

“That payment has been made against the claimant, and I am sure disciplinary action was taken against the accused police officers, the minister was only cited as he represents government in the lawsuit, nothing really personal against him” said a source.

A Harare man Simon Mandoza through his lawyers Fiona Iliff and Obey Shava, from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights challenged illegal arrest and assault at the hands of police officers.

Kazembe as the home affairs minister was reported to have failed to compensate a Gweru student, Simon Mandoza, for $199 500 for injuries suffered within the expected court deadline, hence the court had issued a warrant of arrest against him.

Magistrate Tilda Mazhande had given the minister a two-week ultimatum to pay or he would have to serve 60 days in prison.

“It is ordered that in default, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kazembe Kazembe be and are hereby declared to be in contempt of court in that they have wilfully disregarded the order of this honourable court issued on 20 November 2019 by magistrate Mazhande,” reads the order.

“The fourth respondent (Kazembe) be sentenced to 60 days imprisonment, the whole of which is suspended for 14 days on condition that in his official position as the Minister of Home Affairs, he causes payment of the judgment debt of $199 500 together with interest at the prescribed rate from the date of summons to the date of full payment.”

However sources close to the developments have stated that the payment to the claimant was made today and this could be only a matter of payment transactions that could have caused the compliance delay.