Jason Machaya Biography | Wife, Children, Car Accident, Political Career, Health Issues, Criminal Abuse of Office Conviction and Acquittal
This is the biography of Jason Machaya, also known as Jaison Machaya, a Zimbabwean politician and a member of the Zanu-PF political party.
Personal Life
Wife
Jason Machaya is married to Fatima Machaya.
Children
Machaya has several children, some of whom have faced tragic circumstances. In July 2020, his son Foster Machaya died in a car accident on the Gweru-Mvuma Road, which also claimed the life of a prominent gold dealer from Gweru who was awaiting trial for murder. Foster had been previously accused, along with his brother Farai Machaya, of the 2009 murder of Moses Chokuda, an MDC supporter, in Gokwe. Foster was pardoned by the courts, while Farai was sentenced to 18 years in prison in 2011.
Another of Machaya’s sons, Rafael Machaya, died in November 2017 in a car accident near the Ngezi turn-off while travelling from Harare. Born in 1984 in Kwekwe, Rafael attended Chana Primary School and Mbizo High School. He played professional football for teams such as Lancashire Steel Juniors, Silo United, and Chrome Stars. Rafael was survived by his wife and five children.
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Car Accident
In July 2016, Jason Machaya was involved in a car accident on the Harare-Gweru Road near Chegutu. The accident occurred when one of the wheels of his Land Rover Discovery 4 came off, causing the vehicle to roll over. Machaya, who was travelling alone from Harare to his farm in Kwekwe, was admitted to Avenues Clinic for his injuries.
Political Career
Jason Machaya is a former Minister of State for Midlands Provincial Affairs and served as a Senator for Gokwe. He first entered politics in the 1990 elections, winning the Gokwe South parliamentary seat. In the 2000 elections, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Gokwe South Constituency, securing 12,644 votes against his opponents from the MDC and Ind Zanu PF.
Conviction and Sentencing for Criminal Abuse of Office
On September 22, 2020, Jason Machaya was sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted of selling state land. He became the second minister from the administration of the late President Robert Mugabe to be jailed, following former Energy Minister Samuel Undenge. The court conditionally suspended 18 months of his sentence, requiring Machaya to serve an effective term of two years and six months.
The Gweru magistrate, Charity Maphosa, found Machaya and the former Midlands provincial physical planner, Chisayinyerwa Chibururu, guilty of criminal abuse of office. The court heard that Machaya had allocated 17,799 residential and commercial stands on state land in Gokwe to developers, which was deemed beyond his official responsibilities. Machaya allegedly received back 1,791 stands from developers and sold 1,185 stands to various individuals.
Acquittal by the High Court
Dissatisfied with the conviction and sentence, Machaya and Chibururu appealed the decision at the Bulawayo High Court. In June 2023, the High Court quashed their conviction following the appeal. The judges, Justice Evangelista Kabasa and Justice Nokuthula Moyo ruled that the prosecution had not proven the case against Machaya and Chibururu beyond a reasonable doubt.
Health Issues
Between December 2017 and January 2018, while detained at WhaWha Prison, Machaya was taken to Gweru Provincial Hospital after falling ill.
