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ZIFA lawyer celebrates victory
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ZIFA lawyer Lovemore Madhuku celebrated a legal victory yesterday after one of the two court bids aimed at stopping this week's crucial elections ended in his clients' favour. Temba Mliswa, an aggrieved presidential aspirant, withdrew his urgent High Court application for an interdict, which had sought to delay the elections set for Saturday at the Rainbow Towers in Harare.
Mliswa, along with another disqualified candidate, Walter Magaya, had been challenging the election process and the legitimacy of the new ZIFA statutes. The case was brought before Justice Tawanda Chitapi, who presided over a three-hour legal argument.
Madhuku, who had been hired by ZIFA last week to represent the organization in response to the court challenges, successfully argued that the case brought by Mliswa was not urgent. According to Madhuku, the review application filed by Mliswa was out of time, as it was supposed to be submitted within eight weeks under ZIFA's statutes. However, Mliswa filed his application after 11 weeks, prompting the court to dismiss it.
"After some three hours of argument, we were able to reach a position where Mliswa, through his legal counsel, conceded that the review application was out of time, which then makes the urgent chamber application not founded on that," Madhuku explained.
As a result, Mliswa's urgent application was withdrawn, and the applicant was ordered to pay the costs of the hearing. Justice Chitapi clarified that while the urgent application was withdrawn, Mliswa could still pursue the case as a normal court application in the future.
Mliswa, who had been disqualified by the ZIFA Electoral Committee due to alleged failures to meet eligibility criteria, accepted the court's decision.
"To me it's fair. The facts are there. We were out of time; figures don't lie," Mliswa said. He conceded that the technicalities of the case led to the withdrawal of the application, but expressed his intent to continue pursuing the matter through a normal court process.
Despite the setback, Mliswa remained determined to challenge the legitimacy of the ZIFA Congress, claiming that the constitution had no mandate to make decisions as the officeholders' terms had expired in 2022. He argued that the Congress had been illegal, and therefore, the resolutions—including those relating to the elections—should be nullified.
Mliswa made it clear that his fight was not about personal gain, but about improving football governance in Zimbabwe.
"This fight is not about me; it's not about you; it's about football," he said. "Football has won, no one has lost. But in football, we need to have people who will lead it with credibility, who understand the constitution, and who will come up with a better constitution. Our constitution is in a mess."
He added, "The sooner elections are held, the better."
Despite this victory, ZIFA will still face another legal challenge when Justice Chitapi is expected to make a ruling on Walter Magaya's case, which is centered around his disqualification for failing to submit his O' Level certificate.
Madhuku expressed relief that at least one hurdle had been cleared, but indicated that ZIFA would prepare for the Magaya challenge in two days' time.
Mliswa, along with another disqualified candidate, Walter Magaya, had been challenging the election process and the legitimacy of the new ZIFA statutes. The case was brought before Justice Tawanda Chitapi, who presided over a three-hour legal argument.
Madhuku, who had been hired by ZIFA last week to represent the organization in response to the court challenges, successfully argued that the case brought by Mliswa was not urgent. According to Madhuku, the review application filed by Mliswa was out of time, as it was supposed to be submitted within eight weeks under ZIFA's statutes. However, Mliswa filed his application after 11 weeks, prompting the court to dismiss it.
"After some three hours of argument, we were able to reach a position where Mliswa, through his legal counsel, conceded that the review application was out of time, which then makes the urgent chamber application not founded on that," Madhuku explained.
As a result, Mliswa's urgent application was withdrawn, and the applicant was ordered to pay the costs of the hearing. Justice Chitapi clarified that while the urgent application was withdrawn, Mliswa could still pursue the case as a normal court application in the future.
Mliswa, who had been disqualified by the ZIFA Electoral Committee due to alleged failures to meet eligibility criteria, accepted the court's decision.
Despite the setback, Mliswa remained determined to challenge the legitimacy of the ZIFA Congress, claiming that the constitution had no mandate to make decisions as the officeholders' terms had expired in 2022. He argued that the Congress had been illegal, and therefore, the resolutions—including those relating to the elections—should be nullified.
Mliswa made it clear that his fight was not about personal gain, but about improving football governance in Zimbabwe.
"This fight is not about me; it's not about you; it's about football," he said. "Football has won, no one has lost. But in football, we need to have people who will lead it with credibility, who understand the constitution, and who will come up with a better constitution. Our constitution is in a mess."
He added, "The sooner elections are held, the better."
Despite this victory, ZIFA will still face another legal challenge when Justice Chitapi is expected to make a ruling on Walter Magaya's case, which is centered around his disqualification for failing to submit his O' Level certificate.
Madhuku expressed relief that at least one hurdle had been cleared, but indicated that ZIFA would prepare for the Magaya challenge in two days' time.
Source - the herald
