By Lloyd Takawira
Mutare – Drama ensued at the Magistrates Court today as Anglican church Manicaland Diocese congregants heckled each other.
This comes after church members attending initial remand proceedings for the province’s Bishop Eric Ruwona harassed each other at the criminal courts.
Ruwona was on Tuesday arrested by Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) for swindling Agribank US$700 000 appeared before judge Tendai Mahwe.
Together with three accomplices, Ruwona took a loan from Agribank to build St Catherine Girls High School but diverted the money for the personal loan.
He used the church’s land as collateral without informing the standing committee.
Outside the courtroom, some church members singing celebrated the church leader’s arrest.
The accused represented by lawyers, Ashel Mutungura and Passmore Nyakureba was granted $15 000 bail.
The ruling drew wild cheers from a rival group that quickly broke into song and dance celebrating the bishop’s freedom.
A war of words erupted between church members of the two factions outside the courtroom and the situation nearly degenerated into violence.
They dressed down each other in the full glare of members of the public using unprintable words.
According to the state prosecutor, Mutyasira the accused committed fraud when he used the church’s name to get the loan approved.
“To achieve their plans on 26 February 2016, the accused person and his accomplices, fraudulently applied for a loan of US$100 000 from Agribank Mutare branch in the name of the Anglican Diocese of Mutare Church Agribank account misrepresenting that they would construct St Catherine’s Girls High School in Rusape and to purchase a vehicle for the bishop.
“The accused person and his accomplices committed to Agribank Mutare to take the loan under a mortgage bond of a certain piece of land situated in Mutare District being stand number 78 Mutare Township as collateral security without the knowledge of the standing committee and the church congregants.
“On February 25, 2016 the accused person and his accomplices fraudulently applied for another loan of $350 000 from the same bank using the same collateral security without the knowledge of the church’s standing committee purporting that they wanted to construct the same school as well as purchase a vehicle for the bishop.
“The loan was approved and the accused person took the money,” Mutyasira said.
The court heard that the suspect and his accomplices also took a bank overdraft of US$250 000 from the church’s Agribank account without the knowledge of the standing committee.
“The accused had no lawful right whatsoever to defraud the church of its money in the manner he did. His conduct caused an actual prejudice of US$700 000 and nothing was recovered,” he added.
He said as a result of the misrepresentation the loan was approved and the accused person took the money.
As part of his bail conditions, Ruwona was ordered to report every Friday to Mutare Central Police Station.
The Bishop was also ordered not to interfere with State witnesses as well as to continue residing at his given address No. 1 Oak Road, Murambi.
The case goes to trial on January 29.
