Opposition MDC Secretary-General and Kuwadzana east legislator Charlton Hwende has demanded his freedom, accusing the Harare magistrates court of unnecessarily delaying his trial.
The outspoken legislator is one of the many MDC parliamentarians arrested and charged with treason since the beginning of the new dispensation in 2017.
He was arrested in January last year and charged with organizing the January 14 protests against fuel price hike announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Hwende’s lawyer, Harrison Nkomo had applied to have his client removed from remand on the grounds that the state was not ready to proceed with trial but state could not grant his application requesting for more time to get evidence on the matter.
Hwende appeared for his routine remand today with the state postponing his matter to 2 March 2019 on the basis that they needed more time to enable them to go to Northern Ireland where Twitter is domiciled to establish whether the Twitter handle in question belongs to the Kuwadzana East legislator.
Responding to the issue, MDC Secretary for Legal Affairs, Innocent Gonese said they were concerned at the failure of the justice service delivery system to handle Hwende’s case.
“The MDC expresses disappointment at the failure of the Justice Delivery System in the case of our party Secretary General Honourable Charlton Hwende who has been on Remand since the 6th of March 2019 for a non existent crime.
“But typical of the State under this illegitimate regime, the Prosecutor opposed the Application and sought a postponement in circumstances which amount to harassment and political persecution,” said Gonese.
