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Fidelis Munyoro Chief Court Reporter

Prosecutor-General Kumbirai Hodzi has filed an application for rescission of a default judgment granted against the prosecution that led to the acquittal of journalist-cum political activist Hopewell Chin’ono on charges of publishing falsehoods.

Chin’ono had approached the High Court seeking a review of the remand court decision to place him on remand.

His argument was that the section of the law under which he was charged no longer existed because it was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court.

Hopewell Chin’ono

Justice Jester Charewa granted a default judgment after the prosecution led by Mr Fungai Nyahunzvi failed to file opposing papers to the application.

Justice Charewa treated the matter as an unopposed and granted the default judgment.

It is this default judgment that sprung the prosecution to approach the court seeking a rescission of the judgment to enable it to contest Chin’ono’s application for review of the lower court’s proceedings.