Mnangagwa implicated in Zanu (PF) intra-party violence

The case has exposed factionalism in Zanu (PF).

Joyce Manatsve said this while giving testimony in court this week on a case in which the two Zanu (PF) youths Simba Mutukwa and Honesty Diura, are accused of public violence.

It is the state’s case led by prosecutor Andrew Marimo, that the youths were deployed by the party to provide security at the entrance at the party’s decisive meeting held at the provincial conference centre, located along Mvuma Road, on January 18 this year.

The meeting involved election of members who would constitute the provincial coordinating committee.

However, while at the entrance of the gigantic $6,5 million built conference centre that hosted Zanu (PF’s 13th annual people’s conference in 2012, the youths started shouting obscenities and denying other members entry into the meeting.

At that moment, the complainant, Joseph Zifungo who stood for Zanu (PF) in the Mkoba constituency parliamentary race, arrived and sought to gain entry. However, the two youths denied him that privilege on the basis that he did not belong to their camp.

They then went on to beat him up with clenched fists and booted feet causing injuries all over his body.

In giving testimony on what transpired, Manatsve told magistrate Sithembiso Ncube that the youths told everyone before they beat up Zifungo that nothing would be done to them because they had been sent to do so by Mnangagwa.

“The youths also said that they would not be arrested by anyone because they had blessings from the Minister of Justice to beat up everyone who wanted to challenge people from his camp in the provincial party elections.

“They also shouted that if police went on to arrest them, they would not go to court and any magistrate wishing to preside over the case would do so at their homes because their boss is Minister of Justice,” she said.

Manatsve also mentioned that she did not give full statements of what she saw on the day to police because she feared for her life.

The sensational claims about Mnangagwa add up to reports that he leads a faction in Zanu (PF) wishing to succeed president Robert Mugabe and also that he uses violence to quell dissenting voices.

The meeting, at which the violence took place, resulted in the whole provincial committee of Zanu (PF) that was “elected” being disbanded by the party’s politburo after it emerged that people aligned to Mnangagwa had unprocedurally been placed into positions they were not fit for while others aligned to theVP Joice Mujuru faction had been sidelined.

Trial in the case whereby the two youths are denying the charges continues next Monday.