Information Secretary Nick Mangwana has come out strongly in defence of Attorney General Virginia Mabhiza, after questions were raised over her presence in President Mnangagwa’s delegation to the Vatican.
Mangwana said Mabhiza’s inclusion was not about her Catholic faith, but about her role as government’s chief legal advisor in high-level state engagements.
He pointed out that she played a pivotal role in Zimbabwe’s recent abolition of the death penalty, a key issue discussed with the Vatican.
“Her expertise carries legal weight in such conversations. That is why she sits in Cabinet and why her presence in Rome was necessary,” Mangwana said.
Mabhiza, who served for a decade as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs before her appointment as Attorney General in 2023, has long been a central figure in Zimbabwe’s constitutional and legal reforms.
But her presence has stirred controversy, with critics alleging personal ties to the president and questioning the integrity of her frequent inclusion on foreign trips. For now, Mangwana insists the Attorney General is there purely for legal and constitutional reasons
