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ConCourt interviews postponed
Public interviews of the 12 candidates for the five vacancies on the Constitutional Court bench have been postponed to the end of the month by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
In May, under the provisions of the Constitution, the benches of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court were split.
The Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice sit on the Constitutional Court by right, but the other five judges are appointed as individuals from the pool of qualified and experienced candidates.
The interviews that were set to take place on Monday and Tuesday next week at Meikles Hotel in Harare will now be held on September 28.
The JSC confirmed the postponement, saying the reason was to ensure compliance with the Covid-19 regulations during the interviews, as well as the need to put in place the necessary technical systems to accommodate candidates who were living outside Zimbabwe.
Following the invitation to members of the public to nominate suitably qualified persons for appointment to five positions of Judges of the Constitutional Court, in terms of the Constitution, JSC received 12 valid nominations. All are sitting or retired judges of the Supreme and High courts.
They are Justices David George Bartlett (Rtd), Energy Chinembiri Bhunu, Donald Stevenson Corke, Paddington Shadreck Garwe, Anne-Mary Gowora, Ben Hlatshwayo, Charles Hungwe, Rita Tambudzai Makarau, Smart Mirirai, Bharat Patel, Happias Zhou and lawyer Arnold Tsunga.
Until May this year, transitional provisions of the 2013 Constitution set the Constitutional Court to consist of the Chief Justice and the Deputy Chief Justice and seven other judges of the Supreme Court sitting together as a bench to hear any constitutional case.
Chief Justice Luke Malaba and Deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza, therefore, automatically became judges of the new, separate Constitutional Court as ex-officio.
As a temporary expedient, Chief Justice Malaba appointed the five senior judges of the Supreme Court to act as acting judges of the Constitutional Court.
The acting judges are Justices Garwe, Gowora, Hlatshwayo, Makarau and Patel, all of whom are candidates to be interviewed.
Public interviews of the 12 candidates for the five vacancies on the Constitutional Court bench have been postponed to the end of the month by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
In May, under the provisions of the Constitution, the benches of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court were split.
The Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice sit on the Constitutional Court by right, but the other five judges are appointed as individuals from the pool of qualified and experienced candidates.
The interviews that were set to take place on Monday and Tuesday next week at Meikles Hotel in Harare will now be held on September 28.
The JSC confirmed the postponement, saying the reason was to ensure compliance with the Covid-19 regulations during the interviews, as well as the need to put in place the necessary technical systems to accommodate candidates who were living outside Zimbabwe.
Following the invitation to members of the public to nominate suitably qualified persons for appointment to five positions of Judges of the Constitutional Court, in terms of the Constitution, JSC received 12 valid nominations. All are sitting or retired judges of the Supreme and High courts.
They are Justices David George Bartlett (Rtd), Energy Chinembiri Bhunu, Donald Stevenson Corke, Paddington Shadreck Garwe, Anne-Mary Gowora, Ben Hlatshwayo, Charles Hungwe, Rita Tambudzai Makarau, Smart Mirirai, Bharat Patel, Happias Zhou and lawyer Arnold Tsunga.
Until May this year, transitional provisions of the 2013 Constitution set the Constitutional Court to consist of the Chief Justice and the Deputy Chief Justice and seven other judges of the Supreme Court sitting together as a bench to hear any constitutional case.
Chief Justice Luke Malaba and Deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza, therefore, automatically became judges of the new, separate Constitutional Court as ex-officio.
As a temporary expedient, Chief Justice Malaba appointed the five senior judges of the Supreme Court to act as acting judges of the Constitutional Court.
The acting judges are Justices Garwe, Gowora, Hlatshwayo, Makarau and Patel, all of whom are candidates to be interviewed.
Source - the herald
