via MDC-T slam ‘political attacks’ on supporters | SW Radio Africa by Alex Bell on Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Douglas Mwonzora said the attacks on MDC-T members are “deeply distressing
The MDC-T on Tuesday slammed ‘political attacks’ on its supporters by ZANU PF, saying the situation continues to deteriorate.
Douglas Mwonzora, the party spokesman, was responding to recent incidents of intimidation and violence against MDC-T members and supporters.
This includes the attack on Mashonaland East official Silent Dube, who was abducted from his farm in Beatrice on Saturday. Scores of suspected ZANU PF supporters and war vets invaded his Shamrock Farm before abducting him. He was later dumped at a nearby army barracks.
The farm invaders, estimated to be about 200 people, reportedly arrived in a convoy of 30 vehicles. Dube, a former army officer who purchased the farm in 2004, told the NewsDay newspaper that he was handcuffed and beaten up.
The attack on Dube is just one of a spate of recent incidents that are believed to be part of a wider campaign of political retribution against the MDC-T.
Most recently, about 13 families accused of supporting the party were reportedly evicted from a farm owned by ZANU PF Minister Nicolas Goche in Shamva.
It is understood that on Sunday morning, guards said to be working for Goche at Ceres Farm raided the homes of the 13 families and threw out their property.
One of the people targeted was Shadreck Sibanda, a losing MDC-T council candidate, who was targeted with an arson attack in the run-up to the elections. Sibanda was told that he was being evicted from the farm because of his affiliation to the MDC-T party.
Mwonzora told SW Radio Africa that the attacks are “deeply distressing,” adding that: “clearly the situation is going to keep getting worse.” He added that the attacks are proof that ZANU PF did not legitimately win the election in July.
“If they had legitimately won, then they would not be harassing members of a party that they claim to have beaten,” Mwonzora said.
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