Churches ask Zanu-PF, CCC to ‘move on’ as Zimbabwe’s opposition faces arrest, violence

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa (C) inspects the guard of honour after being sworn in as President during an inauguration ceremony in Harare on 4 September 2023. (Photo by Zinyange Auntony / AFP)

• The Zimbabwe Council of
  Churches has pleaded with Zanu-PF and the CCC to move the country away
  from election mode for peace and security.
• More than 10 CCC
  legislators and activists have cases before the courts linked to alleged
  political violence.
• The CCC said the
  persecution of its members was linked to the “shambolic,
  disorganised, rigged, and fraudulent election.”

Zimbabwe remains tense since the
23 August general elections, and a crackdown on opposition politicians has moved
the country closer to the edge.

Now, the Zimbabwe Council of
Churches (ZCC) has appealed to political stakeholders not to hold the country
in election mode, and “move on”.

The ZCC’s secretary-general,
Reverend Wilfred Dimingu, met with Zanu-PF’s senior party members to lobby for
peace and stability.

“We are just coming out of
harmonised elections, and as a country, we need to move on to unite the nation
and to walk together.

“So, we are here to
exchange notes with the leadership of Zanu-PF and explore the areas where the
church can also participate in nation-building issues and also unite our
nation,” he said.

Attacks on Citizens Coalition for Change
(CCC) supporters in several parts of the country were purely criminal crimes
unrelated to his party, added Obert Mpofu, Zanu-PF’s secretary for
administration.

“Some of the issues that
they have raised are issues that revolve around criminality.

“If people have been
assaulted or have been beaten up, it’s a matter for the police to deal
with,” Mpofu said.

Soon after the general
elections, CCC spokesperson Promise Mkwananzi went into hiding.

The police offered a R19 000
reward for anyone who could help in his arrest.

In a statement, the police said he
was wanted for allegedly defaulting in court over a public violence charge from
2020. 

But Mkwananzi said: “I didn’t
run away from the authorities. I ran away from bloodthirsty thugs.

“This is not a justice
system. This is a Zanu-PF vindictive system. And I advise all our cadres never
to face it.”

CCC leader Job Sikhala has spent
more than 500 days in custody and is set to appear in court on 2 October. 

Sikhala and 15 others, including
CCC legislator Godfrey Sithole, are facing charges of inciting public violence.

Sikhala is the only one in the
group who was not granted bail.

Also in prison is the leader of
Transform Zimbabwe, Jacob Ngarivhume who was sentenced to four years in jail for
organising the 31 July 2020 anti-government riots.

Early this week, another
opposition legislator, Maureen Kademaunga, was detained overnight on three
attempted murder charges and one for malicious damage to property belonging to
a Zanu-PF rival.

The charges have since been
dropped.

Her lawyer, Harrison Nkomo, said
there was “no iota of evidence” linking her to allegations of
political violence on election day.

The CCC has compiled a list of
its activists who have been subjected to what it calls lawfare.

They are:

Patrick Cheza, Elias Madhuveko, McMaster
Chidyahunye, Courage Mugova, and Delight Zinyemba all from Chirumanzu.

Councillor Alice Tsingano,
Givemore Marovha, who was the party’s chief election agent, and Winana Konoso
in Seke.

In Harare, the party said councillor
Clayd Mashozhera and Daudi Jessub were “being persecuted on various
trumped-up charges because they belong to the Citizens Coalition for Change”.

But the most prominent person
yet to face a charge in court is outspoken legislator and deputy CCC
spokesperson Ostallos Siziva.

Siziva has been accused of
instigating public violence at a football match featuring the country’s bitter rivals,
Highlanders FC, and Dynamos, at Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo on Sunday.

So far, the Zimbabwe Republic
Police said it arrested 19 people linked to football hooliganism on the day.

The CCC, in a statement, said:
“The regime has intensified its crackdown against our members after a
shambolic, disorganised, rigged, and fraudulent election. This continued
persecution must stop.”

Siziva will appear in court on
Friday.

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