Elizabeth Tsvangirai donates food to families of MDC-T 31

By Lance Guma

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s new wife Elizabeth on Wednesday donated foodstuffs worth thousands of dollars to the families of 31 MDC-T members facing ‘trumped up charges’ of murdering policeman Inspector Petros Mutedza.

Mrs Tsvangirai made the donation at the MDC-T Harvest House headquarters and this included maize meal, flour, rice, dried fish, cooking oil and other accessories. She urged the families of those in remand prison not to lose heart.

Told, during a visit to one of the prisons, that the detainees were holding prayers every day, Mrs Tsvangirai said “God will have an answer to all what is happening and you should note that you are all not alone.”

Mrs Tsvangirai urged the families “to support them (detainees) in prayer and God will create a way.”

MDC-T National Organising Secretary Nelson Chamisa said the arrests had not only affected the party but had seriously dislocated family structures.

“Arrests have no time or warning especially in this time where we have a dictatorship. As a party, our position is that the accused have not committed any crime.

“As a party we respect peace and justice that is why President Tsvangirai released doves as a sign of peace during the 13th Anniversary celebrations in Bulawayo.  As a result we want to thank Amai for leading us in this humanitarian programme,” Chamisa said.

The donation event was attended by senior MDC-T officials who included the deputy national chairperson Morgen Komichi, national spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora, national executive members Paurina Mpariwa, Lucia Matibenga and the Harare provincial leadership led by Paul Madzore.

MDC-T Deputy Treasurer General Elton Mangoma said the incarceration of the activists was political and “a true reflection of the evil nature of Zanu PF.”

“That is why the 31 were arrested. What law is there? That people are arrested and denied bail yet we have a case in Shamva were police officers killed people but are walking scot-free. The message that Zanu PF is sending is that it is running scared because of its past actions,” he said.

Early this month the PM’s wife visited the detainees.

Her first port of call was Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison where MDC-T Youth Assembly chairperson Solomon Madzore, National Executive member Last Maengahama and eight other members are detained.

However, some overzealous prison officers tried to prevent her from seeing the MDC-T members. It took the intervention of Senator Obert Gutu, the Deputy Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs for her to be allowed in.

Mrs Tsvangirai later visited Harare Remand Prison where the other members are detained. She prayed and encouraged them to remain focused as “their illegal detention will soon pass.”

The group has had countless applications for bail turned down and some of them have been in custody since their arrest 16 months ago. This is despite the father and brother of the murdered policeman, having already accused Zanu PF and state security agents of committing the murder to gain political mileage.

Tichaona Mutedza, a brother to the deceased cop, last month blew big holes into the prosecution case when he said that his brother’s body had no genitals and tongue and that he believed the suspects who have been in custody since last year in May are innocent.

Solomon Mutedza the father of the murdered cop also joined his brother in accusing Zanu PF and state security agents of killing his son. During cross examination in the bail application for the activists Solomon Mutedza exonerated those in custody and said the police knew the real killers.

Mutedza said he was told his son was struck with a stone on the left side of the head, fell from the truck he was trying to board while it was moving and died on the spot. However, upon inspection, his body showed that his cheek had been pierced, tongue was missing, had a hole in the head and private parts missing.

Mutedza, a Zanu PF member said the talk during the funeral of his son made him believe that Zanu PF and not the arrested MDC-T members had murdered his son. Mutedza said the MDC-T activists should be granted bail, as they were not the ones who killed his son and proper investigations should be conducted.

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