HARARE – A warrant of arrest issued against former finance minister Ignatius Chombo was cancelled on Wednesday as the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) withdrew charges over his wearing of Zanu PF regalia.
The 69-year-old was facing charges of criminal nuisance with three others after they were photographed wearing Zanu PF caps following their expulsion in 2017, days after a military coup that ousted the late former president Robert Mugabe.
Lawyers for Chombo, Kudzanai Chipanga, Innocent Hamandishe and Matthew Mleya said they were being persecuted.
Chombo had been due to attend court on Tuesday but was a no-show. He and his lawyer Tungamirai Muganhiri turned up on Wednesday to argue he was not in wilful default.
Prosecutor Malvern Mapako then told the court the state was withdrawing the charges and “will proceed by way of summons.”
Magistrate Stanford Mambanje cancelled Chombo’s arrest warrant, as well as that of Mapako.
The NPA had charged the four men for “conniving to wear party regalia emblazoned with President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s initials, although they knew they were no longer members of Zanu PF” between December 8 and 13, 2017.
The NPA charged that they took photographs of themselves while wearing the regalia, including hats embroidered with the Zanu PF flag, inscribed “ED” and “Kutonga Kwaro”.
The court heard that the quartet then posted the said photographs on social media.
According to the prosecution, the Zanu PF leadership saw this as a nuisance.
