A journalist based in Masvingo, Godfrey Mtimba was arrested Monday and charged with insulting and undermining the authority of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Mtimba who is also the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (ZUJ)’s vice president, was initially charged with taking pictures of police details arresting MDC Alliance activists but the charge was later changed to undermining the authority of the President.
Police say Mtimba addressed commuters at a bus rank in the city Friday evening and told them that they were suffering because Mnangagwa and his sons were looting Zimbabwe’s resources. Reads the charge sheet:
Muri muqueue imomo nokutamba nhamo nenyaya yaMnangagwa nevana vake vari kuba (You are standing in that long queue and suffering because of Mnangagwa and his children who are stealing).
Mtimba’s remarks come when President Mnangagwa’s family has previously been dragged into several corruption scandals.
The Mnangagwa family was recently dragged into a corruption scandal which involves Drax International, a company that is being investigated for corruption after it supplied medical equipment to the Ministry of Health and Child Care at ridiculously inflated prices.
Critics say the ‘controversial’ company got the tender merely because it has links with the first family. The president’s family has however denied knowing Drax International officials although there are videos and pictures in which members of the first family are seen with representatives including Delish Nguwaya.
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