News / Local
Villagers force marched to Guruve South rally
24 Mar 2016 at 05:14hrs | Views
Guruve – Villagers were reportedly forced to attend a rally held by the governing party, Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF), in Guruve South ahead of the April 23 by-election.
ZimRights states that reports are that the party's Commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere, Secretary for Administration, Ignatius Chombo, and Mashonaland Central provincial chairperson, Dickson Mafios, staged a campaign rally for the Zanu-PF candidate Patrick Dutiro at Mudhindo shopping centre in Guruve South Constituency on Thursday, March 17, 2016, for the by-election to fill the vacant National Assembly seat.
"The by-election was triggered by the expulsion of former Member of Parliament Hon. Chiswell Mutematsaka from the ruling party," said ZimRights.
"Sources said about 14 youths from Birkdale farm owned by resettled locals led by a District youth chairperson identified as Phillip were threatening people at a nearby farm and forcing them to attend the rally."
The organisation said the youths reportedly arrived at the Msitwe commercial farm owned by a white farmer John Wood ahead of the event, attempting to coerce farm workers to attend the political meeting.
"We just had to attend the meeting for fear that we could be beaten up," said one farm worker.
The workers at the farm were reportedly told that if they did not go to the rally the farm would be also forcibly taken over by the ruling party, but sources revealed that some of the people defied the directive leading to poor attendance of the meeting.
In an effort to press the government to implement electoral reforms, the main opposition challenger to Zanu-PF in the past elections, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) has been boycotting the by-elections that happened after the 2013 elections, and Dutiro will contest with the National Constitutional Assembly's Simbarashe Mutsvene.
ZimRights states that reports are that the party's Commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere, Secretary for Administration, Ignatius Chombo, and Mashonaland Central provincial chairperson, Dickson Mafios, staged a campaign rally for the Zanu-PF candidate Patrick Dutiro at Mudhindo shopping centre in Guruve South Constituency on Thursday, March 17, 2016, for the by-election to fill the vacant National Assembly seat.
"The by-election was triggered by the expulsion of former Member of Parliament Hon. Chiswell Mutematsaka from the ruling party," said ZimRights.
"Sources said about 14 youths from Birkdale farm owned by resettled locals led by a District youth chairperson identified as Phillip were threatening people at a nearby farm and forcing them to attend the rally."
The organisation said the youths reportedly arrived at the Msitwe commercial farm owned by a white farmer John Wood ahead of the event, attempting to coerce farm workers to attend the political meeting.
"We just had to attend the meeting for fear that we could be beaten up," said one farm worker.
The workers at the farm were reportedly told that if they did not go to the rally the farm would be also forcibly taken over by the ruling party, but sources revealed that some of the people defied the directive leading to poor attendance of the meeting.
In an effort to press the government to implement electoral reforms, the main opposition challenger to Zanu-PF in the past elections, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) has been boycotting the by-elections that happened after the 2013 elections, and Dutiro will contest with the National Constitutional Assembly's Simbarashe Mutsvene.
Source - Byo24News
