HARARE
–
A
court
has
ordered
the
ministry
of
defence
and
the
Air
Force
of
Zimbabwe
to
pay
over
US$116,000
in
damages
to
a
widow
whose
husband
died
after
being
struck
by
a
vehicle
driven
by
an
air
force
employee.
Justice
Never
Katiyo
of
the
Harare
High
Court
ruled
that
the
ministry
and
the
Air
Force
were
to
blame
for
the
2019
crash
which
killed
Mudavanhu
Manjengwa,
finding
they
had
allowed
an
unlicensed
officer
to
control
a
fleet
of
vehicles
without
proper
supervision.
The
victim’s
widow,
Lucia
Manjengwa,
had
sued
for
loss
of
support
following
her
husband’s
death
from
injuries
sustained
in
the
December
21,
2019,
accident.
In
a
judgment
delivered
on
February
11,
Justice
Katiyo
found
the
driver,
Matthew
Mushinga,
negligent
but
held
his
employers
vicariously
liable
after
concluding
he
had
been
entrusted
with
the
vehicle
despite
lacking
a
valid
military
driving
licence.
“The
defendants,
by
issuing
a
service
vehicle
and
placing
it
under
the
control
of
an
unlicensed
officer,
created
a
foreseeable
risk
to
the
public,”
the
judge
said.
The
court
apportioned
liability
at
95
percent
to
the
ministry
of
defence
and
the
Air
Force,
and
five
percent
to
the
driver,
who
was
described
as
the
primary
wrongdoer.
Evidence
showed
the
deceased,
who
was
44
at
the
time
of
his
death,
earned
about
US$931
per
month
and
would
likely
have
continued
working
for
another
11
years.
Justice
Katiyo
said
the
widow
was
entitled
to
compensation
for
loss
of
support,
awarding
US$116,772.48
or
the
equivalent
in
local
currency
at
the
prevailing
exchange
rate,
plus
interest
from
the
date
summons
was
filed
until
full
payment.