HARARE – Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri Kashiri is suing the Daily News after the paper wrote an article suggesting her organisation fraudulently obtained land from Mutare City Council.
The minister is demanding ZW$1 million defamation damages from the paper.
According to the summons filed last Friday, she said the paper falsely published that her housing cooperative Musha Mukadzi illegally got land.
The articles were published on March 7 and 9 this year.
Despite demand, Muchinguri says Daily News has refused to pay the damages.
“On March 7, 2019, the defendants published a defamatory article in the Daily News entitled “Musha Mukadzi Housing project did not pay for land,” reads her declaration.
“In this regard when the defendants refer to Musha Mukadzi Housing Cooperative they were in fact and indeed referring to the first plaintiff (Muchinguri) because no-one knows Musha Mukadzi Housing Cooperative hence readers who read understood it to refer to first plaintiff as a corrupt and dishonest member.
“First plaintiff is an alter ego of Musha Mukadzi Housing Cooperative since she is the founder of the cooperative.
“The articles were intended to mean that plaintiffs were corruptly allocated a piece of land by Mutare City Council without paying for it.
“That plaintiffs used their company known as Natao Enterprises (Private) Limited which is not registered, which is false.”
Muchinguri said her reputation had been tarnished.
She is being represented by Venturas and Samukange law firm.
