By Paul Nyathi| Bulawayo High Court Judge Justice Francis Bere who recently granted MDC-T splinter leader Thokozani Khupe leave to continue using the party name and symbol has been sworn into the Supreme Court.

The development strikes memories of the (late) Roy Bennett treason case which saw the same prosecutor seeking to imprison Bennett, being promoted to be High Court Judge on the very same case he was prosecuting.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed Bere to the higher court together with Justice Lavender Makoni to fill two of the four vacant posts at the Supreme Court.

The two judges were sworn in by Chief Justice Luke Malaba in Harare on Friday.

“We are very grateful for the appointment of the two judges to the Supreme Court,” said Malaba at the swearing in ceremony.

“We however, still require more judges for the supreme court,” he added.

“The president, using his discretion only picked two names from the list of eight. It is on this basis that we have two new judges, instead of four,” said Malaba.

The other judges left out by the president are Justices Priscilla Chigumba, Alfas Chitakunye, Charles Hungwe, Samuel Kudya, Joseph Mafurise and Nicholas Mathonsi.