Chinotimba steals show at Tredgold

Leonard Ncube Court Reporter
BUSINESS almost came to a standstill at the Bulawayo Magistrates’ Courts  at Tredgold Building yesterday morning when Buhera South Member of the National Assembly Cde Joseph Chinotimba made an unexpected  appearance in court.Cde Chinotimba was a complainant in a case where a man identified as Stephen Gwarada, from Harare had insulted him through the phone in 2011.

Officials from Tredgold Building swarmed Cde Chinotimba and some of them took turns to pose for photographs with him in the corridor leading to Court One and Two as he waited to get into the courtroom.

After the court session, members of the public, a majority  of them informal traders who do business along Leopold Takawira Avenue swarmed the humorous legislator  as he cracked jokes.

Cde Chinotimba (54), of 3357 Lacklyn Road, Mabelreign in Harare, also left the court in stitches when he said he was giving an amnesty to Gwarada as a reward for “voting Zanu-PF.”

“Yes it is true I am the complainant but I want to say something,” said Cde Chinotimba to Bulawayo magistrate Ms Gladmore Mushove.
“He truly offended me and what he did is not permissible in this country but because he did it before the elections, I have to forgive him. I won the election and President Mugabe also won and I thought that I should not continue pressing charges against the same people who voted me into power. That is not proper.”

Cde Chinotimba told the court that as a Christian, he had been taught to forgive.
“It pains me to see a person who voted me into power being sent to jail.  I should forgive him because he voted for me. I  go to church and the church says we should forgive others,” he said.

Asked by the magistrate if he understood that by withdrawing the matter he would not be able to open fresh charges, Cde Chinotimba said: “I would be asking to be arrested because I have said this under oath.”

Mr Mordecai Donga, of Lazarus and Sarif represented Cde Chinotimba. The charges against Gwarada were subsequently withdrawn before plea.

The State led by Mr Jeremiah Mutsindikwa had said on 8 December 2011 while at the Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) grounds in Bulawayo, Cde Chinotimba received a phone call from Gwarada who accused him of stealing his phone.

“You are used to stealing, you are a lunatic, thief,” Gwarada allegedly said.
The court was told that Cde Chinotimba responded by identifying himself but Gwarada allegedly continued insulting him.

“I know you Chinotimba, you are used to killing people but today it is over. If you fail to bring back my cellphone within two days you will die,” Gwarada allegedly said.

Cde Chinotimba reported the matter to the police and he received a text message from the same number, which read: “Please return my line, if you do not I will report you to the police and I am giving you two days only.”

The court was told that Gwarada later sent a text message to Cde Chinotimba apologising, saying he had made a mistake because his number almost resembled the one he wanted to phone.

Meanwhile, Cde Chinotimba, speaking outside the court challenged Bulawayo MPs to be united when going to Parliament than to focus on insulting each other on the grounds of belonging to rival political parties.

Cde Chinotimba said Bulawayo MPs had a tendency of arguing against each other instead of finding common ground on bread and butter issues for the city.

“People are not focusing on real issues especially MPs from Bulawayo, we know that companies are closing and there are water problems but they just come to Parliament to shout at each other as if that would bring food to the city.

“My policy is to talk about things that bring food to the people than to have a Parliament of fighting. You find MPs like Thabitha (Khumalo, MDC-T MP for Bulawayo East) talking about prostitution, do people eat prostitution? People did not vote us to fight or talk rubbish.

The people of Bulawayo should invite me to be their MP because they do not have MPs,” said Cde Chinotimba drawing laughter from members of the public who had gathered outside Tredgold Building.