A former ZESA employee has dragged Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi to court after he was constrained from filing a US$550 000 lawsuit against the power utility.
Ken Francis Manyellah intended to sue ZESA after he sustained back injuries that left him disabled and jobless. He, however, failed to follow the enactment of Statutory Instrument (SI) 106/2021, which requires complainant’s to pay one per cent of the money they claim from defendants in filing lawsuits.
Because of the SI, he was told to pay $46 982, which he does not have. He complains that the SI is unconstitutional as it blocks the poor from filing lawsuits.
Also cited as the respondent is the High Court registrar. Manyellah is seeking a declaratory that the SI violates the Constitution. He told the High Court that he has been sick since the accident he encountered at the ZESA subsidiary, Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC).
All his savings, according to the summons, have been exhausted.
Manyellah was employed as a plant operator from August 2000 to September 8, 2015, when his employment contract was terminated on medical grounds. He had suffered back injuries while pulling a trolley at Harare Power Station.