MDC Harare Chair In Court For 2006 Assault Case

Madzore, the legislator for Glenview South in the MDC-T party led by Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, was on Monday served with summons to appear in court on Wednesday for trial on charges of assaulting Detective Constable Everisto Maponga, a police officer.

Prosecutors allege that Madzore unlawfully and intentionally assaulted Maponga, a member of the Criminal Investigation Department, who was on patrol in the suburb on 14 December 2006 at Makomva Shopping Centre in Gleniew 2 suburb in Harare.

The prosecutors claim that Madzore punched Maponga with his hands on his chest and he staggered as a result of the knocking.

However, Madzore’s trial could not commence on Wednesday and was rescheduled to 17 May 2011 by Harare Magistrate Victoria Mashamba after his lawyer Jeremiah Bamu of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) protested at being served with State papers while in court on Wednesday morning.

The State has lined up two witnesses Maponga and Detective Constable Aaron Chipadza to testify against Madzore during his trial.

Meanwhile in a separate incident related to the MDC-T, Abednico Bhebhe, the ousted legislator for the Welshman Ncube led faction of the MDC, has re-joined his former party.

Bhebhe who had joined the small faction of MDC when the party split in 2005, was fired by Ncube in July 2009 together with two other legislators Njabuliso Mguni (Lupane East) and Norman Mpofu (Bulilima North) allegedly for conspiring with Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s legislator in the House of Assembly.

They were accused of voting for MDC T national chairman Lovemore Moyo as the Speaker of Parliament in August 2008.

But Bhebhe, who is popular in Nkayi, has bounced back in the MDC- T following his election as the deputy provincial chairperson for the premier’s party in Matabeleland North.

The MDC- T confirmed in a statement Bhebhe’s election into the provincial executive for Matabeleland North. He will deputise trade unionist, Sengezo Tshabangu.

Other executive members are Secretary Hwange East MP, Gift Mabhena, Deputy Secretary, Angeline Keswa, Treasurer S. Dube, Organising Secretary T. Sibindi, Deputy Organising Secretary, and S. Mabhena, Information and Publicity W. Luphahla, Director of Elections, F. Dube.