(NEWZIMBABWE) Phone records: Biti fails in court bid

Phone records: Biti fails in court bid
22/07/2011 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter

A HIGH Court judge on Friday ordered Econet Wireless to release Finance Minister Tendai Biti’s mobile phone records to detectives, but the MDC-T secretary general immediately appealed to the Supreme Court. Police obtained a warrant on July 5 granting them access to Biti’s phone records in connection with an ongoing corruption investigation.

The minister filed an urgent High Court application arguing that there was “no reasonable suspicion” that he had committed a crime. He wanted the High Court to reverse the magistrate’s warrant and also prevent Econet from releasing information relating to three numbers.

But Justice Chinembiri Bhunu ruled against the minister in a judgement made available on Friday, clearing the way for the CID Serious Fraud Squad to serve the warrant on Econet.

The minister's appeal, however, prevents Econet from releasing the records until the Supreme Court has ruled on the matter.

Biti's lawyer Innocent Chagonda said: "Justice Bhunu dismissed Biti's urgent application. Subsequent thereto, we received instructions from the minister to file an appeal with the Supreme Court.

“The appeal has been filed and served on all interested parties including the police and the Attorney General's office."

Police say they are investigating alleged criminal abuse of office by the minister over foreign trips made by Petronela Angeline Chishawa, an economist at the ministry who was reportedly paid per diem at “special rates” of up to US$400-a-day.

Chishawa is alleged to have travelled to several countries including China, Sudan and Tanzania in the six months between December last year and May this year. The trips added up to a cumulative three months, it is claimed.

State media reports that Chishawa, who is locked in a bitter divorce, has been romping with the married minister, which he denies.

Chishawa appeared in court on Monday last week on an unrelated charge of defrauding the ministry of over US$4,000 in a procurement deal.

Biti's lawyers say attempts to gain access to his phone records are part of a plot to find embarrassing details about his private life by President Robert Mugabe's loyalists in the security services.

“This is clear evidence that they want to harass me personally. I have been subjected to a lot of harassment over the past few weeks,” said Biti in an affidavit filed at the High Court last week.