HIGH Court judge Justice Clement Phiri has died from COVID-19 complications, fellow High Court judges have confirmed.
Justice Phiri died last night at his home in Marondera, days after he tested positive for COVID-19.
Last year he had part of his foot amputated.
He recovered and was now preparing to get a shoe for the remaining part. His family recently tested positive to COVID-19 but had recovered.
A veteran lawyer, Justice Phiri was appointed to the High Court bench in September 2015 along with four other judges Justice Jester Helena Charewa, Justice Tawanda Chitapi, Justice Davison Moses Foroma, Justice Nyaradzo Priscilla Munangati-Manongwa and Justice Edith Kuda Mushore.
They were the first judges in the history of the judciary to be appointed to the bench after going through public interviews.
In September 2019, Justice Clement Phiri ordered police not to interfere with Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association (ZHDA)’s protest over its missing then leader Dr Peter Magombeyi, and to allow ZHDA to march to Parliament in protest.
Before his appointment as a judge, Justice Phiri worked as a senior lawyer in private practice.
