HARARE – Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) legislator Job Sikhala has been convicted for obstructing the course of justice by Harare magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa.
Sentencing was set for 2.15 PM this Wednesday.
He is the second prominent opposition politician to be convicted over an offence relating to violence incitement after Transform Zimbabwe leader Jacob Ngarivhume was Friday jailed three years over social media calls for anti-corruption protests against government back in 2020.
Sikhala is accused of disturbing police investigations into the May 2022 murder of CCC activist Moreblessing Ali in Nyatsime, Chitungwiza.
The Zengeza West MP, who was the lawyer for Ali’s family, is accused of appearing in a social media video image while threatening revenge against Ali’s murderers.
Prosecutors argued that Sikhala disturbed investigations into the matter considering that the police were already investigating the murder.
Sikhala, however, denied the allegations right up to the end of trial.
During trial, Sikhala denied ever publishing the video prosecutors are relying on and ever addressing mourners during Ali’s funeral wake.
He maintained his innocence saying when this incident allegedly happened, he was at his rural home.
Sikhala also argued that the State had failed to prove that the video was not edited by persons keen on fixing him.
Moreover, video expert Olaf Koschke who testified in his defence also told the same court the video that the state relied on was edited.
Sikhala is also accused of inciting public violence and facts are based on the same utterances allegedly captured in a video.
He has been in jail since his arrest on 14 June 2022 and his many attempts to secure bail were rejected both at the magistrates’ court and High Court.
In pronouncing conviction, the magistrate said court has sufficiently proven the lawmaker was guilty as charged.
“The law says, for a court to convict; it must be proved that the police were investigating the case, and the accused foresaw that the police were investigating and caused the investigation to be defeated.
“In casu, court was impressed by the State expert witness; his evidence was largely corroborating that of other witnesses,” the magistrate said.
She said the expert witness clearly explained that nothing was tampered with in the video the state relied on to convict the lawmaker.
The magistrate said Olad Koschke only showed court that a video could be edited but failed to prove that the video the state relied on was also edited.
Sikhala was represented by lawyers Harrison Nkomo and Jeremiah Bamu.
