Cop charged for inciting insolence in the security sector – NewsDay Zimbabwe
BY SILAS NKALA
A POLICE officer based in Plumtree on Saturday appeared in court charged with causing disaffection among police and military officers by inciting them to refuse being used by Zanu PF to attack fellow citizens ahead of last month’s planned demonstrations.
Constable Levias Ngwenya (36) of Plumtree Police Camp was not asked to plead to the charge when he appeared before Plumtree magistrate Tayengwa Chibanda while applying for bail pending trial.
He was represented by rights lawyer Bruce Masamvu.
The magistrate granted him $500 bail and remanded the matter to August 28.
Prosecutor Dorothy Kanengoni told the court that on June 8, Ngwenya posted on his Facebook wall that “soldiers and police do not be fooled and brainwashed nekamari kamapiwa kasingatenge chinhu (by such a small amount of money)”.
Ngwenya is alleged to have said: “Don’t be used by the Zanu PF government to attack your fellow brothers and sisters in the health and teaching sectors. The reason why mapiwa (you were given) nicodemously is for you to descend heavily on the impoverished civilians who are scheduled to stage a demo on July 31.”
Ngwenya is also alleged to have said that the action by the government was a divide and rule tactic and urged the security forces to wake up and smell the coffee.
“Pasi nekushandiswa nemadhara asina future nesu aya (down with being used by these old people who have no future with us)” Ngwenya is alleged to have written.
It is the State case that Ngwenya’s text was meant to cause disaffection among members of the police and army.
Ngwenya is alleged to have said it was time to embrace change, not to fight citizens.
He allegedly repeated that the Zanu PF government was using the police and soldiers and questioned what they stood to benefit and achieve with the paltry salary of $1 000 and useless COVID-19 risk allowance of US$75 which he said was not accessible from the banks.
The Facebook post was allegedly read by fellow police officers, who caused his arrest.
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