Alex Magaisa
Dr. Alex T Magaisa | |
---|---|
Born | Alex Tawanda Magaisa August 9, 1975 |
Died | June 5, 2022 Margate Hospital | (aged 46)
Cause of death | Cardiac Arrest |
Residence | United Kingdom |
Nationality | Zimbabwe |
Citizenship | Zimbabwe |
Education | Kutama College |
Alma mater | University of Zimbabwe, University of Warwick |
Occupation |
|
Employer | University of Kent, UK |
Known for | Chief Adviser to Morgan Tsvangirai |
Notable work | Technical Adviser to COPAC |
Spouse(s) | Shamiso Magaisa (wife) |
Website | alexmagaisa |
Dr. Alex T. Magaisa was a Zimbabwean lawyer, lecturer of law in the United Kingdom, Zimbabwean political strategist, and blogger. He was living in the UK at the time of his death. Magaisa was known for his political and social commentary work on issues affecting Zimbabwe and was a columnist for newspapers, among them The Zimbabwe Standard, Daily News and Newzimbabwe and The Herald.
Personal Details
Born: 9 August 1975 in the then Charter District, Rhodesia (now Chikomba District, Zimbabwe. He grew up in both rural and urban Zimbabwe, with his experiences in the countryside having a long-lasting impact on him and the way he sees life and people.
Marriage: to Shamiso.
Death: 5 June 2022
School/Education
Secondary: Kutama College (like Robert Mugabe).
Tertiary: Law at the University of Zimbabwe, and the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom.
Service/Career
Magaisa worked at the University of Warwick, the University of Nottingham and was based at Kent Law School, the University of Kent at the time of his death on 5 June 2022. His main area of teaching and research was company and financial services law.
Magaisa was the Chief Adviser to Morgan Tsvangirai in the period to the July 2013 parliamentary and presidential election in Zimbabwe. As chief of staff in the Office of the Prime Minister, he was responsible for overseeing staff and delivering support to the Prime Minister. [1]
He was the technical adviser to Constitution Parliamentary Select Committee (COPAC), the organ that wrote the new Constitution of Zimbabwe in the period to the March 2013 constitutional referendum.
Magaisa also worked in financial services regulation, having spent three years at the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC), the financial services regulator in Jersey, the international finance centre based in the Channel Islands. [2]
Events
Farm Mechanisation Scheme
In July 2020, Fiscorp, the subsidiary (former) of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, which handled the Farm Mechanisation Programme between 2007 and 2008, challenged former legislator, Mr Kudakwashe Bhasikiti and former Cabinet minister Mr Saviour Kasukuwere, to prove that they repaid the loans through which they received equipment under the scheme. This came as former RBZ Governor, Dr Gideon Gono, attempted to set the record straight to say the programme was not corrupt. He was responding to claims by Dr Alex Magaisa, and said that the programme, which was carried out during a difficult period, started as a loan and was later changed to a grant after the Government of National Unity had approved the switch. Former Fiscorp chief executive Mr Mathews Kunaka said no beneficiary was invoiced to repay the equipment and challenged Mr Kasukuwere and Mr Bhasikiti to provide details showing their repayments. He said Fiscorp never issued invoices and beneficiaries never knew the amount they owed, but only signed for delivery of the equipment.
It emerged that Mr Kasukuwere received more than just two tractors that he claimed to have paid for, but an assortment of farm implements. On his Twitter handle, Mr Kasukuwere said: “I think the RBZ should invoice and collect the money. These are public funds and no one should put up useless defence for looting. I paid for the two tractors that I got and I am happy to receive an invoice from the RBZ if I owe them anything.” Mr Bhasikiti, on his Twitter handle said; “Those who are saying farm mechanisation was for free are telling blatant lies. I paid $10 billion for mine, which was worked as the United States dollar equivalent then.” [3]
References
- ↑ Alex Magaisa Kent Law School - Lecturer in Law, University of Kent, Retrieved: 21 Nov 2015
- ↑ Alex Magaisa, Development foundation for Zimbabwe, Retrieved: 21 Nov 2015
- ↑ ‘Kasukuwere didn’t pay for farm equipment’, Zimbabwe Situation, Published: 2 July 2020, Retrieved: 10 April 2023