HARARE - The Zimbabwe Independent and award winning photojournalist Aaron Ufumeli has been detained by security officers manning the Harare Thermal Power Station when he tried to take a picture of the defunct power generating plant.The security officers are now intending to charge him under the Protected Areas Acts for attempting to take the picture without permission.
A driver who was accompanying Ufumeli said one of the security guards confiscated the camera before asking the photographer to follow him into the guard room.
“They are charging me with breaching the Protected Areas Act because I had no permission to take pictures of the power station,” said Ufumeli while in the custody of the security guards adding that they were threatening to take him to Harare Central Police Station.
Ufumeli was working on a story where the Harare City Council intends to take over the thermal power station from Zesa in order to increase electricity supplies for the city.
Zimbabwe Independent news editor Constantine Chimakure confirmed the incident adding that they were doing evrything in their to ensure his release.
According to the Harare City Councils’ minutes of 30 November 2009 it was revealed that there were efforts which have been initiated to takeover Harare’s Thermal power station from ZESA.
Post published in: Politics