Masvingo High Court gets judges

From George Maponga in Masvingo
The Judicial Service Commission has appointed Justices Joseph Mafusire and Garainesu Mawadze as resident judges for the newly opened Masvingo High Court. The two judges are expected to start work at their new station on September 1. Their appointment brings to an end the search for judges to man the first ever High Court to be opened in post-independent Zimbabwe.

Masvingo became the third city to house the High Court after Harare and Bulawayo.

The new court has been operating without judges since its official opening by Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who also oversees the Ministry of Justice Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.

VP Mnangagwa opened the new Masvingo High Court on May 30 this year.

Judicial Service Commission secretary Justice Rita Makarau confirmed the appointment of two resident judges in an interview with The Herald.

“We have nominated Justice Mafusire and Justice Mawadze to be resident judges at the Masvingo High Court and they will start work at their new station on September 1. We are busy looking at the issue of their accommodation right now but they will be starting work at the beginning of September when the third quarter of the High Court Legal Year starts,’’ she said.

Justice Makarau said since its opening, the Masvingo High Court was dealing with the registration of estates by the Master of the High Court office, which is already operational.

“So far, a few estates from people around Masvingo have been registered at the Masvingo High Court, where the Master of High Court office is open,’’ she added.

The opening of the new Masvingo High Court is expected to drastically reduce the runaway backlog of cases while improving the justice delivery system in the province and beyond.

The Judicial Service Commission upgraded the former Masvingo Civil Court into a permanent High Court station that will cater for Masvingo Province and parts of Matabeleland South and Manicaland provinces.