Top cop challenges Sacu constitutionality

COMMISSIONER Douglas Jabulani Nyakutsikwa yesterday challenged the constitutionality of the Special Anti-Corruption Unit (Sacu) following his arrest on allegations of abusing his office to get three stands from Harare City Council.

Nyakutsikwa yesterday submitted before magistrate Ngoni Nduna an application to have his matter referred to the Constitutional Court to seek an order that declares Sacu and its involvement with the Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs ministry as unconstitutional, null and void and the scrapping his prosecution.

Nyakutsikwa, who is represented by Tapson Dzvetero, is jointly charged with City of Harare housing director Addmore Nhekairo on criminal abuse of office charges, but he argues that the matter has been politicised.

He argued that he was arrested and briefly detained by Sacu, headed by Thabani Mpofu and Piason Mbalekwa, individuals who are not civil servants, but were being paid by the government and using State facilities.

He told the court that he divulged top secrets on the day he was being interviewed by Mpofu and Mbalekwa on the case, which he would not have done had he known that the two were not civil servants.

“Since they occupied a government building, I took them to be civil servants who work in the Central Intelligence Organisation or within the police intelligence unit, but I cannot tell in this open court the classified information which I told them since it will get me in serious trouble with my bosses,” Nyakutsikwa said.

The matter will continue on December 1, 2020.