Acie Lumumba back in the news

Harare lawyer Zweli Lunga has demanded a public retraction from Acie Lumumba who claimed this week the legal practitioner had a love relationship with his wife leading to the couple's messy break-up.

The socialite and businessman on Monday made sensational claims, through Facebook, Lunga colluded with his wife, Lilian Madyara to defraud him of US$200,000 from the sale of a matrimonial property under the guise of investment.

Lumumba, real name, Gerald Mutumanje, said, "…My wife confessed she was having an affair with Zweli Lunga".

Lumumba accused the lawyer and his estranged wife's "two lovers" of "using all influence to restrict me from access to my son".

Lunga has not taken kindly to that and has demanded a retraction of the sensational accusations, shot of which civil and criminal summons hung over the former Star FM presenter's head.

"A simple verification with our client would have cleared all the issues that you rushed to publish," Lunga wrote through his lawyers.

"If you had verified with him you would have shelved posting such malicious and defamatory statements simply meant to destroy the goodwill and the reputation our client has built for himself.

"It is not factually correct, that our client is your wife's lover nor is it factually correct that he duped your wife of the purchase price of her house under the guise of investment.

"Our client is happily married to one wife, he does not indulge in extramarital affairs with other ladies nor does he indulge in extramarital affairs with his clients let alone with married women."

The lawyers further told Lumumba to approach the right forum for him to have access to his child and not drag their client into his own mess.

"Our client instructs us to give you free advice that you should desist from the practice of dragging other people into your marital issues with your wife," further reads the letter of demand.

"It is elementary that if you want to have access to your child in the event of resistance from the custodial parent, you simply approach the Children's Court.

"If you do not know where it is located, you can knock on our door and we will assign a legal clerk to show you.

"An order granting access to your child is not obtained on Twitter or Facebook but from a Court of Law of competent jurisdiction."

The lawyers further said their clients would file a criminal complaint of cyber bullying and harassment coupled also institute civil proceedings if Lumumba did not retract his claims.

"In light of the above, our strict instructions are to demand, as we hereby do, the publication of a full, unconditional, and unreserved withdrawal of those defamatory statements, pictures, and related imputations together with an expression of regret on the same online platforms within two hours of receiving this letter as well as for you to delete the posts in question," further wrote the lawyers.

"In the same vein, please note that our client reserves the right to institute criminal charges against you.

"We urge you to consider Section 164B, 164C of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act [Chapter 9:23] as amended by the Cyber and Data Protection Act [Chapter 12:07].

"These two offenses create provisions relating to Cyberbullying, harassment and transmission of false data messages intending to cause harm.

"We enjoin you to take these allegations seriously, failing which you will only have yourself to blame.

"In the event that you fail to retract and delete defamatory statements as demanded, our client shall proceed to issue summons and claim damages for defamation as well as lodge a criminal complaint against you without any further notice to you."