FORMER war veterans’ leader, Jabulani Sibanda, walked out of court a free man after the state dropped charges of insulting the President against him.
Sibanda has been on remand for over two years and the state failed to prosecute him resulting in his case being postponed on many occasions.
Magistrate, Rumbidzai Mugwagwa, said the time taken by the state shows that its house was not order.
She said the case will continue by way of summons.
Sibanda landed in the dock for allegedly contravening the controversial insult law.
His arrest followed his rant in which he accused President Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace of plotting a “bedroom coup.”
It was alleged that he said “power is not sexually transmitted.”
The state also accused Sibanda of threatening to mobilise war veterans to march to the State House.
That was on October 27, 2014 at Hebert Mine in Mutasa.
Prosecutors claimed Sibanda delivered a long speech saying Mugabe and his wife were planning to remove the then vice president, Joice Mujuru, and replace her with Grace.
“I am not prepared for such an arrangement because power is not sexually transmitted,” he was quoted as having said.
Ahead of acquittal, Sibanda had successfully applied for referral of his case to the Constitutional court.
It was his argument that the charge he was facing was ultra-vires his right to freedom of expression.
He had been barred from mobilising anyone to march to any institution as part of his bail conditions.
Linda Gadzikwa appeared for the state.
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