The Supreme Court of Zimbabwe has ruled in favour of Ugandan nationals Robert Kweyunga Kwesiga and Sande Hilda Kwesiga, effectively reversing an earlier High Court decision that had frozen their properties under an unexplained wealth order.
The July 11th, 2025 ruling, delivered by a panel of three Supreme Court Justices, Uchena JA, Kudya JA, and Chatukuta JA allowed the couple’s appeal with costs. It set aside the interlocutory judgment handed down by the High Court on May 15, 2024. That decision had declared the couple’s assets suspicious and ordered them to appear before Zimbabwean police to explain the source of their funds.
The court observed that the claims by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) were unfounded, speculative, and unsupported by any credible evidence.
“The court found that the assertions of the Prosecutor General and subsequent findings by the High Court had no objective factual foundation. There were NO objective facts to support it,” the Supreme Court judgment read.
The NPA had obtained the unexplained wealth order in May 2024, alleging that the couple’s known income was insufficient to support the purchase of two Harare properties and suggesting that the properties were acquired from the proceeds of crime.
However, the Kwesigas were represented by Advocate Thabani Mpofu and instructed by the law firm Gill, Godlonton & Gerrans, who maintained that they legally purchased the properties during their time in Zimbabwe between 2005 and 2013, when Robert Kwesiga served as Regional Head for the International Red Cross and Sandie Hilda Kwesiga worked as a diplomat.
They submitted detailed evidence to the court, including Ugandan property sale agreements, bank statements, pay slips, and affidavits. They also included testimony from their estate agent and legal practitioner confirming that payments were made through formal banking channels. Despite this, the High Court dismissed their explanation on technical grounds, including the claim that some Ugandan documents were unauthenticated.
The origins of the legal dispute date back to December 2020, when a tenant named Derrick Manuel Dube falsely claimed US$108,284 in damages, alleging he had carried out major repairs and suffered losses while renting one of the properties. He secured a default judgment without the Kwesigas’ knowledge and began attachment proceedings to sell the property. The couple’s letting agent, Knight Frank, only discovered the case after the property was advertised for sale. The judgment was later set aside, and an appeal against that reversal was dismissed.
At this point, the Prosecutor General filed an ex parte application, accusing the Kwesigas of acquiring the properties through proceeds of crime. This was even though the couple had already submitted a sworn and detailed explanation of how they acquired the properties and what resources they had at the time.
Nevertheless, in a ruling dated May 15, 2024, Justice Chikowero of the High Court concluded there was reasonable suspicion that a crime had been committed and ordered the couple to appear before the Zimbabwe Republic Police within 30 days.
Shockingly, just two days later, on May 17, 2024, the Office of the Prosecutor General issued a public statement celebrating the judgment as a major step in its fight against crime and corruption. The statement claimed that it had submitted reasonable grounds to suspect the couple of serious criminal conduct and asserted that their known income could not have supported the property purchases. This statement was widely circulated in the media, despite there being no supporting evidence, and has now been branded as patently defamatory.
In response, the Kwesigas appealed to the Supreme Court and emphasized that all court documents are public and open to scrutiny. They stated that no court had ever been presented with evidence of wrongdoing—only evidence showing lawful income and transactions had been submitted.
The Supreme Court, in its final ruling, firmly criticized the approach of the Prosecutor General’s office, calling its application “half-baked” and based on “inchoate or unparticularized suspicion.” Justice Kudya, delivering the lead opinion, noted that the NPA had not even attempted to determine the couple’s income at the time the properties were acquired. The court said the claims were “plucked from thin air” and based entirely on conjecture.
Following the Supreme Court victory, Robert Kwesiga, a senior humanitarian official with the Danish Red Cross, released a personal statement on social media reaffirming his commitment to transparency and humanitarian service.
“Justice is served! I am pleased to share that the legal matter concerning my property in Zimbabwe has been resolved in my favor, following a thorough judicial review and appeal process,” he wrote.
He added, “The court’s decision confirms that the allegations leading to the asset freeze were unfounded. I have always maintained transparency and integrity in my work, both personally and professionally.”
He added, “While the situation attracted significant public attention, I chose to respect the legal process and allow the facts to speak for themselves. I remain fully committed to the humanitarian mission of the Red Cross and to serving communities across Uganda and beyond.”
Kwesiga emphasized that the matter was strictly personal. “This matter was entirely personal and unrelated to my role at the Uganda Red Cross Society, which remains focused on its humanitarian mission,” he clarified.
The Supreme Court’s ruling not only restores the couple’s reputation but also calls into question the conduct of the Prosecutor General’s office, which had publicly accused the Kwesigas without basis. Legal experts are now watching closely to see whether the couple will pursue action for defamation or damages arising from the now-discredited accusations.
