CIO informer in hot soup
SELF-PROCLAIMED Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) informer Delish Nguwaya will now be prosecuted for allegedly defrauding a Chinese businessman of $19 990, after formally withdrawing his Constitutional Court challenge.
Nguwaya, who is jointly charged with Zano Vengai, Clever Gadzikwa and Mbereki Mbizo Nyathi on the fraud case, had his prosecution stalled last year pending determination of the constitutional issues he had raised.
Nguwaya (32), accused the police of hoodwinking him into giving up self-incriminating information which they used to charge him with three others.
Through his lawyer Mr Jonathan Samukange of Venturas and Samukange Legal Practitioners, Nguwaya said he gave up the information incriminating members of the CIO and senior police officers in exchange for immunity.
But the police turned around and arrested him on the basis of the same information.
Nguwaya successfully applied for referral of his matter to the apex court, arguing that the State had unconstitutionally broken the immunity bestowed on him.
On Wednesday, Constitutional Court judge Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza, sitting with eight other judges of the Constitutional Court referred the matter back to the magistrate court after Nguwaya formally withdrew his challenge.
Nguwaya’s papers were not in order and his lawyers were forced to withdraw the matter.
The withdrawal of the matter, in terms of the law, paves way for Nguwaya’s prosecution on fraud charges before a regional magistrate.
The judges were not amused with the manner in which Nguwaya’s lawyers allowed the Registrar of the Constitutional Court to set down the matter, knowing that their papers were in shambles.
“You should have done something to ensure the matter was not brought before us in this state,” said Justice Gwaunza. “We cannot take it lightly because the judges had to go through this big file before you came here and seek removal of the matter from the roll.
“You should have at least communicated to the Registrar after receiving the notice of set down.”
Justice Anne Mary Gowora said: “We have gone through the big file. It is not just a matter of removing the matter from the roll, but we are also worried with the inconvenience we, as judges, occasioned by the development.”