Jonathan Moyo challenges ED on poisoning

Source: Jonathan Moyo challenges ED on poisoning – DailyNews Live

Fungi Kwaramba  23 August 2017

HARARE – Cabinet minister and Zanu PF politburo member Jonathan Moyo waded
into the saga involving the alleged poisoning of Vice President Emmerson
Mnangagwa yesterday; suggesting that police should investigate and
establish what caused his sudden illness.

President Robert Mugabe’s government has been adamant that the Vice
President – seen as the most likely official to take over from the
incumbent in the event that he leaves office – consumed “stale food”.

Mnangagwa’s family and allies insist, however, that the vice president was
poisoned by rivals who are desperate to eliminate him, physically, from
the succession race.

He had to be hospitalised in South Africa for nearly a week following his
alleged poisoning in Gwanda two weeks ago. While he is now back in the
country, Mnangagwa is still to resume his official duties.

Writing on micro blogging site Twitter, Moyo dared the vice president to
report the matter to the police so that full-scale investigations could
commence.

“The claim that VP Mnangagwa was poisoned means a crime was committed.
Police should investigate the claim and crime,” he wrote.

Moyo and Mnangagwa were once bosom buddies.

The pinnacle of their closeness came in 2004 when the Higher Education
minister tried to help Mnangagwa leapfrog his way into the party’s
presidium in what became known as “the Tsholotsho Declaration”.

That incident caused sparks to fly in Zanu PF, with six provincial
chairmen getting suspended for their role in convening an unsanctioned
meeting at Dinyane School in Tsholotsho in November 2004 to plot
Mnangagwa’s rise, which fell through.

Moyo had to leave Zanu PF, eventually, to try his luck as an independent
parliamentarian. He was to bounce in Zanu PF a few years later, famously
remarking on his return that “it was cold outside Zanu PF”.

Many argue that Moyo has never forgiven Mnangagwa for not coming to his
rescue when he fired himself from Zanu PF for daring the party’s
leadership by standing as an independent candidate, against party
instructions to reserve the Tsholotsho seat for a woman candidate.

Since then, Moyo has not hesitated to take pot-shots at Mnangagwa,
directly or indirectly.

It got worse after the Vice President was accused of having instigated
Moyo’s arrest by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission on allegations of
abusing his position to funnel resources from the Zimbabwe Manpower
Development Fund, which falls under his ministry.

Recently, he trashed assertions that the Vice President was the most
senior Zanu PF official to succeed Mugabe, saying it was in fact Defence
minister Sydney Sekeramayi who has been in the game for much longer.

A few weeks earlier, he had dismissed Mnangagwa’s attempts to laud the
Command Agriculture initiative as a huge success, referring to the claims
as “command lies”.

In the wake of a government statement that Mnangagwa illness could have
been caused by eating stale food, the Tsholotsho North Member of
Parliament had last week appeared to suggest that Mugabe’s deputy could
have consumed it before his arrival in Gwanda.

“Who said the stale food was on the VVIP table? Have you checked whether
the allegedly stale food was not eaten elsewhere prior to the event,” Moyo
said on Twitter.

Apart from the statement issued last week, government has not commented on
whether it has begun the probe on the alleged poisoning.

Mnangagwa’s sympathisers and allies have claimed he was poisoned with non
radioactive palladium, which damaged part of his liver, according to the
doctors who performed surgery on him during his admission South Africa.

This is at variance with last week’s government’s statement.

Government has ruled out suspected food poisoning, saying results of tests
conducted suggested Mnangagwa ate stale food on the day in question, which
upset his tummy.

It also dismissed social media reports that Mnangagwa could have consumed
ice cream laced with poison at the Gwanda youth interface rally.

“What doctors think happened is that he ate stale food,” Information,
Media and Broadcasting Services minister Chris Mushohwe was quoted saying
in the State media.

Contacted for comment yesterday, Mnangagwa’s son Emmerson Junior, said the
vice president’s office will soon issue a statement.

He said: “I appreciate your concern regarding his health . . . I am sure
his office will make a statement at the appropriate time.”

Food poisoning occurs after eating contaminated food contaminated by
infectious organisms – including bacteria, viruses and parasites – or
their toxins.

Its symptoms can start within hours of eating contaminated food, often
include nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea.

But throughout history, there are famous poisons that have been used to
kill people, including the deadly arsenic, also known as “the king of
poisons” due to its discreetness and potency.

Arsenic has taken many famous lives, including Napoleon Bonaparte, George
the Third of England and Simon Bolivar to name a few.

But a person can also fall ill from eating food that has gone stale – a
chemical and physical process in foods that reduces their palatability.

Stale food doesn’t have nutritious and taste and if one eats it they might
get bacteria diseases, which might cause vomiting, diarrhoeal and
abdominal pains or mild fever.

Mnangagwa’s associates have reacted angrily to the claims that their
godfather ate stale food, telling the Daily News yesterday that the vice
president was livid with the claims.

“His hands bear the scars of intravenous syringes that he had. He was not
eating through the mouth and he is angry that some people are saying he
ate stale food when there is no such evidence,” one of the associates
said.

The associate claimed Mnangagwa lost considerable weight while he was
hospitalised in South Africa due to the procedures performed by doctors,
including draining some of the poison that had affected some of his
organs.

“He will go for further check-ups but he is yet to resume work and has
gone to Kwekwe (his home). I am not sure when is he going to return but we
want to have a family member always close to him to ensure that he eats
the right food,” he added.

With Mugabe turning 94 in February next year, fierce jostling has emerged
among his top lieutenants who believe they have what it takes to succeed
him.

The race, which has been on for the past two decades, has had its
intrigues.

Four vice presidents have so far succumbed to varying ailments, denying
them of the opportunity to get a chance to run for the top office.

These are Joshua Nkomo (1917-1999); Simon Muzenda (1922-2003); Joseph
Msika (1923-2009) and John Landa Nkomo (1934-2013).

More interestingly, Joice Mujuru, once seen as a shoo-in to take over from
Mugabe, was fired from Zanu PF and government in 2014 for plotting to
dethrone her boss using unconstitutional means.

Mujuru, who is now leading the National People’s Party, had deputised
Mugabe for about 10 years.

Nicknamed “the crocodile” in the Shona language, Mnangagwa was appointed
after the sacking of Mujuru.

But since taking over from Mujuru, Mnangagwa has found himself facing
similar charges from his internal rivals of plotting to unseat Mugabe.

Mnangagwa’s allies are therefore pointing an accusing finger at their
rivals for what happened in Gwanda although there is no evidence to
validate their claims.

In the past, there have been six break-ins at his offices with his allies
saying those were plots to eliminate him.