MUTARE- Two aspiring candidates of the newly formed political outfit Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) led by Nelson Chamisa were yesterday arrested during a door to door campaign exercise in Sakubva high density suburb.
The two Simon Mapuvire ward 4 and Edson Kalulu ward 5, were arrested by Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers at Chisamba police while conducting a door to door campaign for the upcoming by elections slatted for 26 March.
CCC provincial leadership described this as intimidation tactics, after the two were picked up police but later released without charges.
Ironically the same ZRP officers at Chisamba also accompanied a ZANU PF candidate in the same area as escorts during an impromptu campaign exercise organised as a counter to the door to door exercise.
CCC Manicaland provincial spokesperson David Panganai said police have shown their impartiality and bias towards political parties in the handling of electoral matters in violation of their ethics of proffession.
He however said this was a familiar continuation of tactics used by Robert Mugabe’s regime that only expose the new dispensation as a farce and further strengthens the call by Chamisa for electoral reforms.
“I can confirm that the two were picked up by police yesterday obviously in what is clear harassment, intimidation and delaying tactics. They were not charged because they were within the confines of the law.
“We know very well that for one to gather people and supporters for purposes of campaigning they need to notify the police but here is a situation where these aspiring councilors were going on a door to door campaign implying they were not gathering people.
“The onus is on the owners of the house they were visiting to allow them in or not and there is no reason for the police to be involved at all,” said Panganai.
When contacted for comment one of the former city fathers, Mapuvire was in high spirits although he declined to comment on the matter only confirming that they were held for an hour and half between 2:30 pm until just after 4 pm.
Panganai declared that the party would not be deterred by these tactics as they are already anticipated from the state and would face head on any institution of the state.
“We view this as a continuation of the police colluding with our political contestants just like during Mugabe’s time, to harass our candidates and try to delay our electioneering and canvasing of votes.
“We remain unmoved by the use of state machinery by our political opponents but we will continue to do exactly what we think is within the confines of the law to canvass for votes as allowed by the proclamation of election dates.
“We are not going to be intimidated we will face head on any state apparatus, institution that violates our rights to campaign freely,” he said
In a related incident Manicaland deputy organizing secretary Itai Masaka is on trial for allegedly assaulting a Zanu PF member and breaking his wrist watch in a confrontation over attempts to assassinate Chamisa.
Masaka (43) was on Wednesday granted ZW$10 000 by Mutare Magistrate Prisca Manhibi facing assault charges as defined in Section 189(1) of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act.
Masaka allegedly visited the home of Jestiere Majaira (31) who is the Zanu PF ward 14 chairperson and confronted him for being part of the terror gang which attempted to assassinate Chamisa along Mutate Harare highway in October 2021.
