By Takavafira M. Zhou.
Zanu pf must not only educate Tinashe Goga Shumba about the Electoral Code of conduct, but also to desist from thuggery. After Zanu pf lied to police that it had a rally at Jeka Business Centre on 20 July when in actual fact it did not have any rally there but at Danga, CCC anticipated rally at Jeka Business Centre was turned down by police with CCC champions from ward 15 arranging transport to attend a CCC rally at Mataga Growth Point. After their successfully rally, a truck carrying 70 CCC champions from Mataga was blocked in front by Goga’s car and at the back by two trucks ferrying Zanu pf supporters from Danga rally to Gwengwena and Yorks. That a prospective Mp had the temerity to block CCC supporters in spite of clear code of conduct to respect other political parties to campaign freely speaks volumes of not only the ignorance of this prospective Mp but also his thuggish behaviour. It was only the intervention of Assistant Inspector Dumela, Sgnt Nhuri and Sgnt Togara that prevented a possible showdown as the hardened CCC supporters were under siege from Zanu pf supporters and ready to defend themselves.
After the police had intervened and ordered both Goga and and blocking trucks to get off, Goga’s driver driving Privy’s Nissan hardboard car followed the truck to Jeka where he led a group of youth in throwing stones to the CCC supporters in the truck. The truck evaded the attackers, dropped a few CCC supporters heading to Chingechuru. The attackers pursued the truck on its way back and attacked CCC supporters from Masarira village at Chegato turn-off who stood their grounded and warded off the attack.
This gave the truck driver room to drive back to his shop at Danga.
I arrived at Danga from Mataga at the same time the truck driver got back to Danga, with Zanu pf youth in hot pursuit and was briefed about the fiasco caused by Goga and Zanu pf youths. Goga had by then departed from Danga and I managed to engage the local Zanu pf chair and appealed for peace, informing him that elections must never be an excuse for conflict as campaign must be restricted to ideas and not conflict.
While we thought we had engaged Zanu pf leadership in meaningful discussion, Zanu pf youths under the leadership of Privy Nkomo followed us in the evening at Masarira Business Centre insulting both President Chamisa and myself and claiming Zanu pf had already won the elections in Mberengwa as they would commandeer village heads to drive people to polling stations and vote for Zanu pf. As much as CCC champions wanted to retaliate over their initial stone throwing and insults, I informed them to give the Zanu pf youths enough room to insult us and leave us in peace.
We reported these acts of attacks, insults and provocation to police at Jeka Business Centre who referred us to police at Danga who refused to open a docket as they claimed they were under strick instructions to report political motivated issues to their superiors for advice on how best to deal with such cases, and then advice us. We certainly feel Tinashe Goga Shumba is not above the law and so as well are Zanu pf youths. Privy Nkomo must be warned that our respect of her mother who is a teacher at Chegato Primary School must not be abused. Neither should he think merely being a Zanu pf youth leader and looting gold from Janasi with assistance of Goga and Chinese at the expense of poverty and environmental terrorism is wisdom. Our quest for peace and stability must never be taken as a sign of weakness.
A new Zimbabwe is loading and the people of Mberengwa must never salivate at Goga and Privy’s threats, gold looting, and falsehoods that they can determine how people would vote. It is the democratic right of people of Mberengwa to vote for a party of their choice. A person’s vote is secret. No amount of lies can stop an idea whose time is up. Elections must be free, fair and credible and let the best candidate win the day
Shanduko muZimbabwe
Ngaapinde Hake Mukomana
Dr Takavafira M. Zhou
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