MDC-A Konjana election appeal removed from roll

Fidelis Munyoro Chief Court Reporter
The Supreme Court has removed from the roll an appeal by MDC-Alliance losing candidate for Chegutu West Mr Gift Konjana challenging the the victory of Zanu-PF party legislator Cde Dexter Nduna in the July 2018 harmonised elections.

Mr Konjana failed to comply with the law which required him to have the election petition to be heard within the prescribed three months, after he filed his heads of argument way out of time.

He challenged the Electoral Court’s decision rejecting his election petition on the grounds that it was fatally defective.

But the Supreme Court has upheld the lower court decision saying it now has no jurisdiction to hear an election petition appeal once the prescribed period of three months has expired and removed the matter from the roll.

Mr Konjana was seeking an order to overturn the Electoral Court’s decision confirming Cde Nduna as the legislator for Chegutu West constituency.

In his appeal, Mr Konjana, argued that Electoral Court erred in October 2018 in finding that his petition against Cde Nduna was fatally defective for want of compliance with court rules.

Konjana argued that Justice Zimba-Dube blundered by placing no significance on the merits of his petition in view of the fact that ZEC acknowledged under oath the error that resulted in the undue return complained against.

Mr Konjana wanted the Electoral Court’s decision to be set aside and in its place be substituted with an order to the effect that the matter be referred to trial on the merits before a different judge of the Electoral Court.