By Shorai Murwira
Former finance minister in the late president Robert Mugabe ‘s government, Ignatius Chombo is battling to save his life against cancer.
His legal counsel, Professor Lovemore Madhuku revealed Chombo’s health condition in court on Wednesday.
Chombo is facing charges of fraud and criminal abuse of office.
He is among Mugabe’s ministers who were arrested in 2017, when President Emmerson Mnangagwa toppled the previous government with help of the army.
“My client has no reason to abscond trial, he has been here since 2017 when he was first arrested for the same charges and he has never fled the country.
“He is a cancer patient, who only went out of the country when he was first arrested to get medical attention and he came back, and also he has religiously abided by the court’s orders when he was first arrested,” Madhuku told the court.
Madhuku also said Chombo has been going in and out of the court court room during the proceedings in order to attend to his health condition.
The state is alleging that Chombo has been parceling land unlawfully when he was still a local government minister.
Prosecutor Charles Muchemwa is opposing bail for Chombo saying he will abscond trial because the state’s case is ‘strong’.
However, Madhuku shot back and queried why would the accused person run away now when he had stayed in the country for three years now after he was arrested facing the same offences.
