ConCourt refuses to hear Buyanga case until he returns 6-year-old son

The Constitutional Court (ConCourt) has rubber-stamped a Supreme Court decision not to hear businessman Frank Buyanga’s matter until he returns his six-year-old son to his ex-girlfriend Chantelle Muteswa.

The ConCourt bench comprising Justices Ben Hlatshwayo, Paddington Garwe, and Bharat Patel yesterday dismissed Buyanga’s appeal against a decision by the Supreme Court to refuse to hear his matter until he complied with a High Court ruling ordering him to return his son to Muteswa.

The ConCourt also dismissed Buyanga’s appeal against a Supreme Court ruling ordering an enquiry before he could be granted joint custody, accusing him of flagrant disregard of court orders.

After accusing him of approaching the court with dirty hands the ConCourt ordered Buyanga to pay the costs of the suit.

“Both matters CCZ/21 and CCZ19/21 are struck off the roll,” the bench ruled.

“In view of the applicants flagrant disobedience of several court orders of the magistrates’ court, High Court and Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court withholds its jurisdiction to entertain the applicant in matters CCZ19/21 and CCZ21/21. Both matters are struck off the roll.”

Buyanga had made two appeals before the Constitutional Court that were consolidated into one with the consent of both parties with the first one against an order by High Court judge Justice Jacob Manzunzu to return the child he had taken out of the country against a court order.

The Supreme Court abandoned it and he went back to the same court applying for condonation, but the court said it would only hear the case if he complied with the High Court ruling.

Buyanga then approached the ConCourt appealing the Supreme Court decision, claiming his rights were violated and the highest court dismissed it.

In the second appeal, Buyanga challenged an order by Supreme Court judges who ordered an enquiry before joint custody. The judges ruled that Justice Happias Zhou erred when he granted joint custody before the said enquiry.

This forced Buyanga to go to the Constitutional Court saying an enquiry was a violation of the rights. But the ConCourt dismissed all the cases and reprimanded Buyanga’s lawyer, Tafadzwa Mapuranga for assisting a fugitive from Justice.

Meanwhile Buyanga is on Interpol’s wanted persons’ list after disobeying the order to return the child to its mother. Nehanda Radio