The incident, which has infuriated the MDC-T leadership in Manicaland province happened in full view of 46 year-old Eusebia Chikonyora’s Grade 7 pupils. The teacher was led away to Dangamvura police station were she was charged with ‘engaging in opposition politics.’
MDC-T spokesman for Manicaland, Pishai Muchauraya confirmed the incident and told SW Radio Africa that Chikonyora was dragged out of her classroom in the middle of a lesson. She was led away by police sergeants Sithole and Moyo.
“I’m told the police action left the pupils distressed. If they had an issue with her, they should have simply asked her to go to the Headmaster’s office or invite her to visit the police station and not drag her out of class in full view of the school ,” Muchauraya said.
He continued: “What is shocking us is that the police had the audacity to charge her with taking part in opposition politics when she is a civil servant. But how many civil servants are ZANU PF card carrying members today, especially here in Mutare and Manicaland as a province.”
“For the record we know that Anxious Mzilikazi a ward 22 ZANU PF councilor is a teacher at Mzilikazi primary school in Buhera, Seenza Sithole, the district administrator in Bikita was a councilor in Chipinge, Gurai Simango, an education officer in Chipinge is a former ZANU PF councilor,”
“Also, there is a Magodo, the current ward 7 chairperson for ZANU PF in Chipinge but is Headmaster at Mafumise secondary school. There is another Headmaster, Timon Tandi who is a ZANU PF ward 12 councilor in Makoni. The list is long so you wonder why the police have targeted Chikonyora, just because she happens to sympathize with the MDC,” the MP added.
The Makoni South MP told us the teacher was kept at Dangamvura police from 9am up until two o’clock in the afternoon. She was not physically harmed but was interrogated for hours.
Police told her they had information she was observed distributing MDC-T fliers prior to a political rally the party held on 21st August in Mutare. In the end, the MP said, Chikonyora was asked to choose between politics and teaching.
“It’s not up to the police to run her life. The problem we have now is that the police have become overzealous and are now more ZANU PF itself than Robert Mugabe,” Muchauraya said.
It has become routine for teachers to be targeted by ZANU PF and the partisan armed on allegations that they are sympathetic to the MDC.
The Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe recently raised concerns that teachers are once again increasingly becoming the main targets of ZANU PF sponsored violence and intimidation as the country limps towards another poll. – Swradio africa
Post published in: News
This is no surprise-I remember when I was a teacher and at the same time a school development association chairman at a certain primary school in Glen-Norah “B†when I invited the then MDC Member of Parliament –Pricilla Mushonga Misihairambwi as a guest speaker at our Annual General Meeting. I was labelled an MDC and was accused of turning everyone to be an MDC supporter. Because of this I was stripped off my post as SDA chairperson-reported to the police station and even taken to the Ministry Of Education Harare Region – for questioning on false allegations. ZANU-PF supporters had in their minds that they can’t have an MDC teacher employed by a ZANU-PF Government. ZANU-PF wants everyone, not only teachers, to be a ZANU-PF supporter. So where is democracy in Zimbabwe if everyone is forced to support ZANU-PF. People must have and should enjoy their right to choose and join political parties of their choice without fear and favour