LATEST: Warrant of arrest issued for Byo South MDC aspirant

Peter Matika, Senior Reporter

A WARRANT of arrest has been issued against one of the two MDC Alliance aspiring National Assembly candidates for Bulawayo South constituency, Kunashe Muchemwa after he failed to appear in court on Wednesday.

Muchemwa was supposed to appear in court with three other party activists to answer to charges of contravening section 36 (1) (a) (b) of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act Chapter 9:23 – Public violence.

They four were arrested following skirmishes at the party’s provincial offices in Bulawayo sometime in March this year where they allegedly perpetrated violence against other party supporters.

Muchemwa and the other three accomplices namely Mlandu Ncube, Felix Mhaka and Eric Gono were being charged concurrently and were meant to receive their sentences yesterday.

The sentencing of the quartet will now be done on 23 July this year.

This is not the first time Muchemwa has been at loggerheads with the law. In 2014, Muchemwa was accused of robbery and ironically had been on the run.

He was accused of seizing a vehicle that was in possession of the party’s rival faction.

Muchemwa and other MDC members faced robbery and theft charges, after they allegedly hijacked a vehicle belonging to then Matabeleland North provincial chairman Sengezo Tshabangu.

Muchemwa and his colleagues allegedly robbed Tshabangu’s driver, Mr Zaccaria Nkomo of cash and cellphones.

It was reported that Muchemwa and his accomplices pounced on Nkomo, along Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Street in Bulawayo and assaulted him before hijacking the vehicle.

Bulawayo magistrate Miss Sithembile Ncube presided over the case.

Muchemwa has defied calls by the party to withdraw his candidature and allow one of the candidates Eng Francis Mangwendeza to represent the party in the polls.