Leading prosecutor resigns

The latest judicial departure, senior public prosecutor Wilson Gandanzara, who was handling the high profile corruption trial of deputy Information minister Bright Matonga that opened on Monday, was a low-profile prosecutor who lawyers say always conducted himself professionally in court.
His resignation was confirmed on Tuesday by Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, who speculated that the departing prosecutor may have left for financial reasons, while civic groups and lawyers said his departure spoke volumes about the extent of the executive’s interference with the judiciary.
Gandanzara, who was said to have been “pressured into resigning”, has not taken advantage of the government’s program to hand out formerly white-owned land to the elite and had recently made significant strides in prosecuting Matonga.
Gandanzara had obtained incriminating evidence, including taped transcripts of the junior minister soliciting for a bribe from controversial Harare businessman Jayesh Shah.