High Court Says It Will Hear Nurses' Case Against VP Chiwenga On Thursday

Harare High Court judge Justice Amy Tsanga will on Thursday 26 April hear the urgent application which was filed by the Zimbabwe Nurses Association (ZINA). The nurses filed an urgent application on Friday challenging the decision made by Vice President Constantino Chiwenga to summarily dismiss them for going on strike. The nurses want the decision to be declared null arguing that the Vice President does not have the legal authority to fire the nurses. The nurses have also claimed that they were threatened with violence when they tried to engage the government on the matter.

In their application, the nurses say,

. . . In terms of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the applicants have the right to be heard prior to an administrative decision affecting them being made…the third respondent is not the applicant’s employer. He is not party to the employment relationship between the applicants and the first respondent. He does not have the power at law to hire or fire nurses.

ZINA is being represented by Precious Chakasikwa and Bernard Chidziva of Kantor and Immerman Legal Practitioners.  The nurses have since called off the strike while the government has rehired all the nurses who were purportedly fired.