TSVANGIRAI CRASH DRIVER IN COURT

Morgan and Susan Tsvangirai had been married for 31 years

The lorry driver involved in the road collision that killed Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's wife, Susan, is due in court.

Chinoona Mwanda, 35, will plead not guilty to a charge of culpable homicide over Friday's crash, his lawyer said.

Chris Mhike said his client had not been negligent and the poor state of the road was to blame.

Mr Tsvangirai has returned to Zimbabwe to prepare his wife's funeral after undergoing treatment in Botswana.

The circumstances of 50-year-old Mrs Tsvangirai's death have stirred up a whirlwind of suspicion, given the past acrimony between the partners in Zimbabwe's fledgling unity government.

Mr Mwanda is very much distressed and the publicity is putting him under aggravated pressure Chris Mhike Lawyer Rumours fly after Tsvangirai crash

Officials from Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change say they have seen nothing to suggest foul play, however they want to carry out their own investigation of the incident.

Zimbabwe journalist Brian Hungwe says it is hoped the outcome of the driver's case will lay to rest many unanswered questions.

Mr Mwanda is due to appear at a magistrates' court in the town of Chivu in the province of Mashonaland East, about 200km (124 miles) south-east of Harare.

Lawyer Mr Mhike said: "[Mr Mwanda is] pleading not guilty essentially on the basis that he was not in any way negligent. He's attributing the cause of the accident to the poor state of the road.

"Any other driver driving on that patch of road would have more than likely ended up in the situation that this driver ended up in."

He added: "[Mr Mwanda is] very much distressed and now the publicity which the story is receiving is putting him under aggravated pressure."

Thousands of people from the townships of Harare have been walking long distances to the prime minister's home in Strathaven, a western suburb of the capital, to pay their respects to Mrs Tsvangirai.

Mr Tsvangirai travelled to Botswana on Saturday for medical care and rest

Brian Hugwe says a rally is to be held at Glamis Stadium in Harare on Tuesday to pay tribute to Mrs Tsvangirai on the eve of her burial in Buhera.

Mr Tsvangirai, who had previously spent time in Botswana while in opposition, flew there on Saturday for medical tests and rest after leaving a private clinic in Harare, MDC officials said.

He was treated for head and neck injuries from Friday's crash at the hospital in the capital.

His political rival President Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace visited the MDC leader's bedside on Friday evening.

The Tsvangirais, who had six children together, were travelling to Buhera when the crash occurred near Beatrice on Friday afternoon.

Police have said the lorry crossed into the lane in which the prime minister's 4x4 was travelling and side-swiped the vehicle, causing it to roll over three times.

The British foreign ministry said the truck was part of an aid project jointly funded by the US and UK and that the crash appeared to be "a genuine accident".

The collision came two days after Mr Tsvangirai delivered his maiden speech to parliament after being sworn in as prime minister in Zimbabwe's power-sharing government.

But relations between the MDC and Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF party remain tense, with MDC ministerial nominee Roy Bennett still in custody, accused of links to an alleged plot to kill Mr Mugabe.

BBC NEWS REPORT.