Supreme Court to hear 12 CCC candidates appeal

Source: Supreme Court to hear 12 CCC candidates appeal -Newsday Zimbabwe

The 12 CCC aspiring MPs were disqualified following an application by Zanu PF activists styling themselves as “registered voters”.

THE Supreme Court will tomorrow sit to hear the appeal made by 12 Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) parliamentary candidates who were disqualified from participating in the August 23 hamornised elections after their nomination papers were alleged to have been filed after the deadline.

A three-panel bench chaired by Justice Antonia Guvava will hear the matter after a case management meeting was held yesterday with lawyers from both parties.

Welshman Ncube and Paidamoyo Saurombe represented the 12 candidates, while Tawanda Kanengoni was representing the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec).

The 12 CCC aspiring MPs were disqualified following an application by Zanu PF activists styling themselves as “registered voters”.

The Zanu PF activists argued that CCC candidates filed their nomination papers after the 4pm deadline on June 21.

Zec opposed the application, insisting that the candidates filed their papers before the deadline, but High Court judge Justice Bongani Ndlovu ruled in favour of the Zanu PF activists.

The CCC candidates had opposed the application arguing that the High Court had no jurisdiction to hear and determine the matter, a position they have maintained in their appeal.

They said the application was a review disguised as a declaratur, adding that Zanu PF activists had no locus standi in the matter.

In their Supreme Court appeal, the 12 are seeking a relief that the court declines jurisdiction over the matter with costs at the higher scale of legal practitioner and own client being paid by the applicants jointly and severally, the one paying the other to be absolved.

CCC candidates will file their heads of argument by the end of day today.

The opposition candidates want the application by Zanu PF activists dismissed with costs.

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