The Supreme Court has dismissed former Attorney General Johannes Tomana’s appeal to reverse a High Court order compelling him to reinstate five prosecutors.
The five prosecutors had allegedly been dismissed for indiscipline and insubordination following an industrial action they engaged in 2011, but the Supreme Court has upheld the High Court’s decision that they be reinstated.
The five prosecutors Leopold Mudisi, Patros Dube , Derrick Charamba, Musekiwa Mbanje and Mehuli Tshuma on the 18th of September in 2011 acting under the auspices of the Zimbabwe Law Officers Association embarked on a strike seeking a redress of their salary related grievances.
Two months later, the then Attorney General Tomana allegedly withdrew his authority and power to prosecute conferred on the officers in terms of Section 76 of the constitution.
The High Court ruled in favour of the five, stating that they had not been dismissed lawfully and following due process.
Likewise, Deputy Chief Justice Luke Malaba and Justices Paddington Garwe and Bharat Patel unanimously dismissed an appeal by Tomana seeking the reversal of the High Court order.
The court maintained that in dismissing the five, all employed by the Civil Service
Commission as prosecutors, Tomana did not follow the tenets of natural justice embodied in section 3 of the Administrative Justice Act.