By Paul Katanda

OPPOSITION politician Tendai Biti’s second application for recusal of Harare Magistrate Vongai Guurira Muchuchuti has been dismissed.

In her ruling, Muchuchuti  said that if a court makes a decision that is against an accused person it does not mean it is biased and that justice does not mean the litigant gets what they want.

Biti argued that the magistrate is being biased.

He once mounted the same application but it was dismissed forcing him to appeal at the High Court.

High Court judge, Justice Tawanda Chitapi, ruled that there was no evidence that the magistrate and prosecutor Michael Reza were biased.

Chitapi added that higher courts were also “very reluctant” to intervene in matters that were pending before lower courts.

“If every decision by a presiding officer that one party disagreed with could go to a higher court on review or appeal while the matter was still in progress, then delays would be intolerable.

“In rare cases where someone’s rights could be seriously infringed otherwise, a higher court could intervene, but this is very rare,” Chitapi ruled.

Meanwhile, the row between Biti and Russian Tatiana Aleshina continues on other fronts with the two currently suing each other at the High Court.

Aleshina sued Biti for defamation while the CCC vice president in turn sued her for causing his “wrongful arrest and detention”.

The trial is set to continue on May 27, 2022.