A JUDGMENT BEFORE THE HEARING: ANOTHER SIGN OF A BROKEN SYSTEM

There is a new scandal in Zimbabwe, and it says a lot about how far our justice system has fallen under ZANU PF rule. This time it is about High Court Justice Never Katiyo. He is now at the centre of a big legal and political storm after giving a judgment that lawyers say is not only wrong but looks like clear fraud. The shocking part is that the judgment was written and released on 28 July 2025 before the case was even heard in court.

This case is about a property dispute between a Bulgarian state company called Technoimpex and a Harare businessman named Rajendrakumar Jogi. Lawyers from Sinyoro and Partners, who are representing Technoimpex, were shocked when they found a judgment from Justice Katiyo removing the case from the court roll and cancelling the earlier order. But the problem is simple. The hearing is only set for 15 September 2025. Even worse, there is still another application waiting to be dealt with. This kind of application is used to sort out small issues before the real hearing starts.

The scandal became bigger when the judgment said Advocate Thabani Mpofu appeared in court and made arguments. This never happened. The document also listed two other lawyers, D. Sanhanga and L. Uriri, as if they were present. But all the lawyers have confirmed that none of these appearances happened. It was all made up.

Because of this strange situation, Sinyoro and Partners wrote to Mpofu to ask what was going on. Their letter explained that they took the judgment from the court, but something was very wrong. The judgment had no date of hearing, only a stamp from 28 July. They asked Mpofu when he had appeared in court since they knew he had never been there.

Mpofu replied with shock. He wrote to the Registrar of the High Court and said it was not true that he had been before Justice Katiyo or made any submissions. He even said the whole judgment looked “totally made up.” Mpofu also said this was not the first time Justice Katiyo added his name to things he never said. This is a serious warning because it shows a pattern. Mpofu explained that a judgment written before a hearing is a big irregularity and weakens trust in the courts.

Sinyoro and Partners then went to speak to Justice Katiyo directly. But instead of clearing things, the judge said the lawyers had appeared before him. He stood by the false claims. This shocked the law firm, and they decided to report the issue to the Judicial Service Commission. They wrote to its secretary, Walter Chikwana, on 31 July 2025.

In their letter, they said they were worried because what happened was close to criminal behaviour. They said the judge’s insistence on something that is “objectively impossible” is a very serious matter. They also said removing their client’s protection without a hearing was not a mistake. It was done on purpose to block due process. They reminded the JSC that this was the second time Justice Katiyo had given a judgment without a proper hearing, which raises questions about bias, misconduct, and even an attempt to deny their client justice.

They sent the letter to other senior officials, including Chief Justice Luke Malaba, Judge President Mary Zimba-Dube, and the Law Society of Zimbabwe. Because this case involves foreign investment, many people are now watching. The pressure is rising for someone to take action.

What happens next matters. It will show if Zimbabwe’s courts can clean themselves or if they will continue to protect those who abuse power. Under ZANU PF, we have seen how systems break. This case is another painful reminder that our fight for justice is far from over.