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Bona Mugabe wins High Court ruling allowing divorce claims
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Bona Mugabe, daughter of the late President Robert Mugabe, secured a significant legal victory last week as Justice Amy Tsanga of the High Court dismissed an exception raised by her estranged husband, Simbarashe Mutsahuni Chikore. The ruling allows Bona to proceed with both her annulment and divorce applications concurrently, a matter that had been fiercely contested since 2023.
Represented by lawyer Addington Chinake, Bona had amended her original divorce summons to include a claim for annulment-a legal declaration that the marriage was null and void from the start. This move was prompted by revelations that Chikore was still legally married to Margaret Jeanine Brooks in the United States when he married Bona on March 1, 2014.
Chikore's lawyer, Rogers Matsikidze, opposed the amendment, arguing that Bona could not seek annulment and divorce in the same case, as the two claims are mutually exclusive under the Matrimonial Causes Act. He contended that the dual claims created uncertainty about the nature of the legal action, insisting that Bona should have withdrawn her original summons and filed a separate annulment suit.
In response, Chinake argued that the court had granted consent to amend the summons, which Chikore had accepted, and that this consent order should be final and binding. He stressed that, pending annulment, the marriage was legally valid on paper, and accused Chikore of deliberately delaying proceedings to avoid addressing allegations of bigamy.
Justice Tsanga's ruling acknowledged the procedural objections but emphasized that the amended summons was permissible. She noted that a marriage entered into while one party is already married is legally void, supporting Bona's primary claim for annulment.
The judge further explained that it was justifiable to hear the annulment claim first, and if it failed, to proceed with the divorce application on grounds of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. "While it is generally not the norm to have two causes of action in divorce summons, the ends of justice would be better served by allowing the two actions to be pleaded in the alternative," she stated.
With the exception dismissed, Chikore was ordered to file his plea to the amended summons within five business days. Costs were reserved to follow the outcome of the case.
This ruling marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing legal battle between Bona Mugabe and Chikore as she seeks to formally end their marriage, which has been mired in controversy due to questions over its legal validity.
Represented by lawyer Addington Chinake, Bona had amended her original divorce summons to include a claim for annulment-a legal declaration that the marriage was null and void from the start. This move was prompted by revelations that Chikore was still legally married to Margaret Jeanine Brooks in the United States when he married Bona on March 1, 2014.
Chikore's lawyer, Rogers Matsikidze, opposed the amendment, arguing that Bona could not seek annulment and divorce in the same case, as the two claims are mutually exclusive under the Matrimonial Causes Act. He contended that the dual claims created uncertainty about the nature of the legal action, insisting that Bona should have withdrawn her original summons and filed a separate annulment suit.
In response, Chinake argued that the court had granted consent to amend the summons, which Chikore had accepted, and that this consent order should be final and binding. He stressed that, pending annulment, the marriage was legally valid on paper, and accused Chikore of deliberately delaying proceedings to avoid addressing allegations of bigamy.
Justice Tsanga's ruling acknowledged the procedural objections but emphasized that the amended summons was permissible. She noted that a marriage entered into while one party is already married is legally void, supporting Bona's primary claim for annulment.
The judge further explained that it was justifiable to hear the annulment claim first, and if it failed, to proceed with the divorce application on grounds of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. "While it is generally not the norm to have two causes of action in divorce summons, the ends of justice would be better served by allowing the two actions to be pleaded in the alternative," she stated.
With the exception dismissed, Chikore was ordered to file his plea to the amended summons within five business days. Costs were reserved to follow the outcome of the case.
This ruling marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing legal battle between Bona Mugabe and Chikore as she seeks to formally end their marriage, which has been mired in controversy due to questions over its legal validity.
Source - The Herald
