Former Harare mayor, Herbert Gomba, who was arrested Monday and is facing charges of contravening some sections of the Electoral Act, is expected to appear in court on Wednesday.
His lawyer, Harris Nkomo, told VOA Zimbabwe Service that the state claims that Gomba contravened Section 37, sub-section 2(e) of the Electoral Act.
The Electoral Act stipulates that any person “who transmits or is concerned in transmitting to any person as genuine a declaration false in any material particular, knowing the same to be false or not knowing or believing it to be true shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding level fourteen or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years or to both such fine and such imprisonment.”
An online publication, ZimLive, reports that Gomba, who will be contesting the forthcoming council elections as a Citizens Coalition for Change candidate, allegedly registered as a voter using a Glen Norah address in Harare where he does not live. The house is said to be owned by his parents.
ZimLive also reports that Gomba allegedly registered 12 other voters using the same address.
The complainant is Jephson Matewe, the Zanu PF candidate for the Ward 27 by-election, who has lost to Gomba three times in a row, according to ZimLive. Gomba got 7,676 votes in the 2018 ward 27 election and 1,918 voted people for Matewe. Gomba, who was in the opposition Movement for Democratic Change once led by Nelson Chamisa, was recalled by Douglas Mwonzora’s MDC-T.
Zimbabwe will hold by-elections on March 26 in which 130 council and parliamentary seats are up for grabs.
Studio 7 reporter Jonga Kandemiiri contributed to this article