High Court To Hear Blessed Mhlanga’s Appeal Against Denial Of Bail
The Harare High Court will hear an appeal on Monday, 10 March, filed by Alpha Media Holdings senior journalist, Blessed Mhlanga, against the denial of his bail by Harare Magistrate Farai Gwitima.
Mhlanga, represented by Chris Mhike of Atherstone & Cook, is challenging the lower court’s decision to deny him bail.
He argues that the magistrate erred by refusing him bail without compelling reasons to justify his continued detention.
In his appeal, Mhlanga contends that the court “a quo” wrongly concluded that, as a senior political reporter, he would interfere with potential witnesses simply because some of his juniors might be called to testify.
He also argues that the magistrate misdirected herself by assuming that consent to remand equates to an admission of guilt or reasonable suspicion.
Mhlanga further submitted that the magistrate’s decision ignored his denial of transmitting the controversial messages in question during the bail proceedings.
Mhlanga was arrested on 24 February 2025 after voluntarily presenting himself to the police. He faces charges of allegedly inciting violence and transmitting data messages that could cause property damage.
These accusations stem from his reporting on press conferences held by Blessed “Bombshell” Geza, a war veteran and critic of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, where Geza called for the President’s resignation over allegations of corruption, incompetence, and misgovernance.
More: NewsDay
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