By Rutendo Matinyarare
Yesterday, (Wednesday 21 May) the Zimbabwean courts were kept busy by a case launched by Wicknell Chivayo that continues to drag the name of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa through the mud.
According to the charge sheet presented yesterday:
1. Sometime in May 2026, on a date not specifically provided by Wicknell Chivayo, Sonia Louis Madzikanda, his ex-wife, allegedly stole Wicknell’s phone and downloaded images, which she then shared with her mother, Tabitha Madzikanda, aged 62.
2. After allegedly stealing the phone, Sonia and her mother allegedly manipulated one of the images using AI to make it appear as though Wicknell was with President Ramaphosa. The two then allegedly published the image on social media, causing Wicknell emotional distress.
These were the two charges that remained after the court vetting office dropped two more serious charges — US$1.4 million fraud and undermining the office of the President.
Now, according to several people who reportedly analysed the image using open-source AI systems, the image contains no AI markers, suggesting it may in fact be authentic.
We are told that, prior to the drafting of the charges, Wicknell sat with presidential aspirant Kuda Tagwirei to discuss the above charges — including those later dropped — and they agreed that a case must be opened. This they did despite the matter having the potential to become a geopolitical stink bomb that once again taints the image of the President of South Africa due to association with them.
After this alleged planning, Wicknell reportedly opened the case at Highlands Police Station, the same station that had arrested Sonia the previous day. He allegedly convinced the police officer and station head to compile a docket containing the incoherent charges.
Thereafter, detectives reportedly received the docket, took Sonia’s statement, and satisfied themselves that despite Sonia not having seen Wicknell in May 2026, and despite no forensic testing reportedly being done on the image, there was sufficient prima facie evidence to send the matter to prosecutors and consume the court’s time.
A prosecutor, upon seeing these charges, also apparently felt there was enough evidence to prosecute the matter and secure a conviction.
When the matter reached the court vetting office, the fraud and undermining-the-President charges were reportedly dropped due to lack of evidence.
Sonia and her mother then applied for bail, and the prosecution did not oppose it. However, somehow the judge meant to approve and sign off on their release was unavailable, forcing them to spend the night in remand.
It is increasingly clear that Sonia has not committed a crime, but that an ill-conceived decision was instead made by the men many say are currently running the country — Kuda Tagwirei and Wicknell Chivayo — to make an example of her and send a message that their parallel Cabinet is all-powerful.
We are beginning to see the same pattern of a country being run by unelected individuals around the President, similar to what occurred with Grace Mugabe before Robert Mugabe was removed in 2017.
This case epitomises the rot, hubris, and clumsiness now associated with the parallel Cabinet of aspiring presidents, advisers, runners, and confidants around the President who have increasingly taken over the reins of the country.
Even more concerning is that all this appears to be an extension of the growing incoherence of the emperor himself, who now keeps rambling about being the Munhumutapa of Zimbabwe despite lacking the legal mandate and royal lineage associated with the title.
It has become difficult for any level-headed Zimbabwean to associate themselves with this circus. Hence, despite the risks and dangers involved, people like myself have found it increasingly difficult to continue being associated with this level of institutional madness.
