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LIVE: Khupe Loses First Case Against Chamisa, Mudenda, But Will She Fail The 2nd One?
6 November 2019
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By Own Correspondent| ZimEye on Wednesday afternoon interviewed Dr Thokozani Khupe’s lawyer Prof Lovemore Madhuku after his client lost the application challenging her dismissal from Parliament in April last year.

Khupe was dismissed after the MDC Alliance leader, Nelson Chamisa wrote to National Assembly Speaker, Advocate Jacob Mudenda, recalling her on the grounds that she was no longer representing the opposition party’s interests.

Speaking to ZimEye, Prof Madhuku said the case is one of two. He said,

“that case you are referring to, it is an old case, it is a last year where she was challenging her expulsion from parliament where she was expelled from parliament so she took the speaker of parliament to the constitutional court. So the matter was between her and parliament. It was not between her and the other MDC. So when this matter was not heard before the election, because it was only set down for hearing after the election, I am sure it’s around August or so, I think it was around December last year, I will check that.

“Then the concourt decided not to deal with the matter on the bits at hand, it was overtaken by events, because parliament had already been dissolved, so we sought to argue that even though parliament had been dissolved, they should still determine whether her expulsion from parliament had been properly done, so what was decided today was the court refusing to hear that argument on the basis that they thought it was no longer relevant to hear it and determine.

“That is the judgement that was issued today. It’s not a judgement issued on the merits on anything. It was an old case, relating to her having been recalled from parliament.”

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https://youtu.be/RI9lFS1oZDM

Meanwhile, Khupe approached the Constitutional Court claiming that her dismissal was unprocedural and that she was still Member of Parliament for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province.

The Chief Justice, Luke Malaba, led ConCourt on Wednesday dismissed Dr Khupe’s application with no order to costs. Dr Khupe and her renegade faction were the applicants in the matter, while Parliament of Zimbabwe, Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda and MDC Deputy National chairperson, Morgen Komichi, were cited as respondents.

Dr Khupe told the court that, having been elected MDC vice president at the party’s congress in 2006 and 2014, she is the rightful leader of the party, following the death of its founding leader, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, on February 14, last year.

“Regrettably, the passing on of our President triggered a vicious power struggle in our party. Many of my senior colleagues in our top administrative committee known as the Standing Committee, provided for in terms of Article 6.4.4, chose not to follow our Constitution, preferring to position themselves to their greatest advantage in the succession race,” she said.