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Mashudu Netsianda, Senior Court Reporter

LAWYERS in Bulawayo have hailed the appointment of former Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nicholas Mathonsi to the Supreme Court bench.

In separate interviews, city lawyers said Justice Mathonsi was a hard worker who deserved the elevation.

The president of the Bulawayo Lawyers Association (BLA) Mrs Nikiwe Ncube-Tshabalala said her association welcomes Justice Mathonsi’s ascension and congratulated him.

“As lawyers in Bulawayo we would like to congratulate one of our own, Justice Nicholas Mathonsi, following his appointment to the Supreme Court bench and we wish him well. Justice Mathonsi’s appointment is clearly a show of confidence in his work by the appointing authority, His Excellency, President Mnangagwa,” she said.

Another prominent Bulawayo lawyer Mr Godfrey Nyoni, who is also a trustee of the Law Society of Zimbabwe (LSZ), described Justice Mathonsi as a sharp minded person whose acumen is a true reflection of his work.

“Clearly, Justice Mathonsi deserves this appointment by virtue of his good judgments, which are there for all to see. His shrewdness, sagacity and judiciousness in the manner he expeditiously handed down judgments during his tenure as High Court judge is indeed a true reflection of his passion for his job coupled with hard work,” he said. 

Another Bulawayo lawyer, Mr David Coltart, posted on his Twitter account congratulating Justice Mathonsi.

 “Hearty congratulations to my former legal colleague Nicholas Mathonsi on his elevation to the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe. This is thoroughly deserved and he will add enormous value to the Supreme Court,” he posted.

President Mnangagwa on Wednesday appointed Justices Mathonsi and Charles Hungwe to the Supreme Court bench to beef up human capital and ease the workload of the appellate court.

The two judges were among five High Court judges who were last week interviewed to fill two vacancies at the Supreme Court. They will be sworn in on Tuesday next week.

The other judges who participated in the interviews were Justices Alfas Chitakunye, Felistaus Chatukuta and Samuel Kudya.

Justice Hungwe is currently working in Lesotho following his secondment to that country’s High Court.

The appointment of the two follows public interviews that were conducted by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) last week in terms of the Constitution, which seeks to increase transparency and enhance good governance.

After the interviews, the JSC sent a list of “qualified persons as nominees” for the two posts, from which President Mnangagwa made the appointments in accordance with Section 180 of the Constitution. — @mashnets.