Beatrice Mtetwa said the file had been tossed from one judge to another who all declined to hear the matter after reading its contents. “The file was given to a judge yesterday. I went to the High Court this morning and that judge to whom the case had been allocated had still not come in by 10:00hrs so the file had to be re-allocated. It was then taken to another judge who after going through the file said that he could not hear the matter. It was then taken to another judge at about 11:00hrs who then said needed time to read the file. We were then told to check with the judge president. So until about lunch time nobody had any news as to what was happening,” said Mtetwa.

Mtetwa said that in the afternoon they were then tossed from one office to the other until the matter was referred back to the judge president.

“In the afternoon we were tossed from one office to another and finally at about 16:5 hrs we were told that the file had been given back to the judge to whom it had been allocated in the first place and that they will deal with it on Monday. Judge Anne-Mary Gowora is the judge who has been with the file since Thursday. And this is supposed to be an urgent application.”

Gowora was the initial judge to whom the case had been allocated on Thursday.

“This was the same judge who was not there in the morning and I do not see the logic of allocating the matter to a judge who was not there at all. This is the reason why they re-allocated the file to another judge in the morning who read it and declined to hear the matter. That is why it was then taken to another judge who after reading file felt it was “too hot” and sent it back to the judge president,” said Mtetwa.

The judge president said that the case would be heard on Monday by Gowora. “I am completely dumbfounded. Why can’t the matter be heard tonight, Saturday or on Sunday because this is an urgent matter. This is frustrating,” said Mtetwa.

“This is one case that demonstrates that the rule of law has really broken down in this country,” she added.

She said Mukoko’s whereabouts were still unknown three days after her abduction. “We searched everywhere but we haven’t found her,” she said. Mukoko was abducted by 15 unidentified people at her home on Wednesday. Human rights groups have roundly condemned the abduction.