By Evans Muranganwa.
Harare, Zimbabwe. (News Of The South) – A human rights organization has roundly condemned the brutal attack of National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) candidate for Bikita West parliamentary by-election, Madock Chivasa, and his election agent, Thomas Mudzamiri.
In a statement ,the organization said it “ is worried by the continued electoral malpractices in the Bikita by-election and all recent by-election, and the implication of the acts of violence as a
precursor to the forthcoming 2018 elections”.
It went on to state that the calculated act of political violence by an organised hit squad wearing the ruling party Zanu-Pf’s regalia is a slap in the face of the constitutional requirement for free, fair and credible elections.
It is reported that the orgy of violence was reportedly carried out by about 13 people wearing Zanu-PF regalia around Nyika Growth Point at about 10 pm in the evening of Tuesday, January 17, 2017.
The armed assailants were reportedly driving a Ford Everest vehicle belonging to Marondera legislator, Lawrence Katsiru, and they had been trailing the victims the whole day during their election campaign in preparation of the by-election on January 21.
Chivasa confirmed to ZimRights that: “They hit me with the back of a pistol on the head and I fell down, breaking my arm. The assailants clearly asked me who I thought I was to oppose Zanu-PF. I am on my way to Silveira Hospital to get treatment. We reported the matter at Nyika Growth Point last night, but there was a single police officer who said he could not handle political cases and only promised to his superior who was absent from the station. We have since notified a person only identified as Mashavave who is a senior ZEC official in Bikita.”
The assailants reportedly hit Chivasa on the forehead twice with the back of a pistol as he left a supermarket at around 10 pm in the evening, and he fell to the ground before they further lashed him and his election agent with sjamboks and other motley weapons.
The suspected ZANU PF youths reportedly waylaid Chivasa and Mudzamiri as they made their way home after dropping off the rest of the campaign team. When Chivasa and Mudzamiri drove to a supermarket at Nyika, the way out.
It is suspected, from the reports the victims got from the members of the public who later assisted them, that among the assailants were two soldiers who are based in Bikita.
When confronted by the public who later discovered the assault why the assailants were beating up Chivasa and colleague, the group allegedly fired a gunshot, and it is yet to be confirmed whether anyone was injured from the firearm activation.
Most elections in Zimbabwe have been marred with violence usually perpetrated by ZANU PF activists.However,most of them have never been arrested irking many civil organization who are pushing for effective national healing, transitional justice and reconciliation processes
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