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Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Professor Jonathan Moyo

Harare Bureau
Legal experts and political analysts have slammed Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo for undermining President Mugabe after he claimed that constitutional bodies such as the Zimbabwe Anti- Corruption Commission and the National Prosecuting Authority were not properly constituted.

In a statement that he released to the private media last Wednesday, Prof Moyo attacked constitutionally established independent commissions, principally the NPA and ZACC.

He described as “patently unlawful”, the appointment of members to the two bodies.

President Mugabe swore-in the members appointed to those bodies in February.

Lawyer Mr Tendai Toto on Thursday said that Prof Moyo’s statement was not only an attack on the President but also on institutions that advised him before appointing members of ZACC and the NPA.

“Prof Moyo alleged that the President wrongfully made the two appointments of the chairperson of ZACC (investigations committee), Mr Nguni and the appointment of the acting Prosecutor General Advocate Ray Goba,” said Mr Toto.

“The authority and wisdom of the President is being questioned to make these appointments. The advice that may have been made by the Judicial Service Commission to the President regarding the appointment of the acting Prosecutor General is also questioned by Prof Moyo. The latter, in similar fashion, questions the authority and wisdom of the President to appoint chairperson of ZACC condemning in equal measure the supposed consultation that the President conducted with the Committee on the Standing Rules and Orders.

“The implication is that the JSC and the Committee on the Standing Rules and Orders can be accomplices to the illegal executive acts and conduct perpetrated by His Excellency President Mugabe that of appointing the chairperson of ZACC and the acting Prosecutor General. The advice and recommendations given to the President and reliance on these is according to Prof Moyo, dustbin material.”

Mr Toto continued: “The press statement by Professor Moyo can be summarised thus, it is a bouquet of scatter bombing allegations of wrongful and illegal exercise of executive functions by the President of Zimbabwe, His Excellency, President Robert Mugabe, partisan and politically motivated wrongful and illegal exercise of State related functions and conduct by the President of Zimbabwe, Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the permanent secretary, Mr George Charamba, the chairperson ZACC, Mr Nguni, and the acting Prosecutor General Mr Goba among other Government officials not mentioned by names.

“The allegations seem defensive to the corruption allegations levelled against Prof Moyo by ZACC and are typically ‘a snooker shot that is hit to whom it may concern calling for the attention of all pockets’.

According to Prof Moyo, Mr Toto said, the appointment of ZACC chairperson (investigations committee) and the acting Prosecutor General were farcical and void.

He said the best persons to answer to Prof Moyo’s claims on the appointments of ZACC chairperson (investigations committee) and the acting Prosecutor General were President Mugabe, the JSC and the Committee on the Standing Rules and Orders.

Political scientist Mr Maxwell Saungweme said Prof Moyo was undermining the person who appointed him to the position of minister because he was the same person who appointed constituting institutions he was attacking.

“He is also even undermining the authority of the very person who appointed him, who appointed the Vice President and ZACC,” said Mr Saungweme.

“Gone are the times when you try to quash corruption allegations by threatening lawsuits and seeking to undermine media freedom and independence of institutions. He needs to address the actual corruption allegations levelled against him and allow facts and the law to exonerate him and seek to subvert justice by threatening premature lawsuits.

“He is totally confused. As a Government minister, he is not above the law and must submit to independent commissions and not undermining them. He is even undermining the constitution he swore to uphold.”

A Harare lawyer who refused to be named said: “His statement is actually shameless. Why is he threatening to sue Zimpapers alone as if it is the only media house that wrote about Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund (Zimdef) ? If my memory still serves me well, I remember that the story was broken by the Zimbabwe Independent and Zimpapers only picked it from them. Why is he not suing Alpha Media Holdings as well? He should simply submit to the law just like any other citizen and if he is innocent the court will clear him. His theatrics of trying to hide behind a tribal card cannot be entertained at law.”