I had no reason to suspect Mubaiwa was lying: Justice Chiweshe testifies

Supreme Court judge Justice George Chiweshe has distanced himself from Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga and his estranged wife, Marry Mubaiwa’s alleged marriage fraud saga, saying he had no reason to think the former model was ‘lying’ and that he was not responsible for solemnising their marriage.

Justice Chiweshe was testifying before Harare magistrate Lazini Ncube in a case where Mubaiwa is accused of fraudulently getting married to Chiwenga while he was sick in South Africa.

The former Judge President told the court during the trial that he did not solemnise the marriage, but referred Mubaiwa to another marriage officer, now High Court judge, Justice Munamato Mutevedzi.

Justice Chiweshe said he never thought Mubaiwa’s request would lead them to a courtroom and that she would lie when she was already staying with the Vice President.

“I assumed it was a request from the couple. Don’t forget Chiwenga had paid lobola, they were living together and were having children, and so I had no reason to suspect that what Mubaiwa was asking for had not been discussed with her husband,” Justice Chiweshe said.

But in her defense, Mubaiwa, through her lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa pleaded not guilty saying from the time of the payment of her lobola on July 2, 2011, they had agreed that they would formally wed as per custom.

Mubaiwa said a wedding was requested from her family upon conclusion of the lobola ceremony.

“As she was pregnant with the parties’ first child at the time of the roora (lobola), no date was agreed to as at the time of the payment of roora. She delivered the parties’ first child on November 4, 2011 and she fell pregnant soon thereafter and gave birth to their second child on November 15, 2012 with a third pregnancy following soon thereafter with the parties’ last child being born on February 13, 2014,” Mubaiwa said.

The trial is still going on. Nehanda Radio