News / National
WATCH: Chamisa supporters called Khupe a dissident
21 Feb 2018 at 09:51hrs | Views
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) youth aligned to Nelson Chamisa on Tuesday detained and assaulted the late Morgan Tsvangirai's deputy, Thokozani Khupe, legislator Lwazi Sibanda, MDC-T secretary general Douglas Mwonzora and several others at Tsvangirai's funeral service in Buhera, Manicaland province.
The youth accused them of opposing moves by acting party president Nelson Chamisa to succeed the late MDC-T leader, who succumbed to cancer of the colon last Wednesday.
Khupe said she was shocked about the violence at Hamunikwa village where she was almost killed by the marauding youth that did not want "us to attend Tsvangirai's funeral".
"Tsvangirai was a very hard working man who would not have tolerated this kind of behavior. We have criminal sons who beat me and others. People must learn to respect the dead. As we arrived at the homestead we wanted to greet gogo (Tsvangirai's mother who did not want Chamisa and Tsvangirai's wife to attend the funeral) but they called us names and said they will kill us."
Speaking on VOA Studio 7 Livetalk's The Connection youth show, she added that "they beat us with stones, umbrellas and any items they could lay their hands on. They called us dissidents saying we should go back to Matabeleland. It was me, Douglas Mwonzora, Abednico Bhebhe, Lwazi Sibanda, and several other people. One stone hit me on my back. I am in pain as I speak right now.
"One man asked us to go into his hut. Those thugs threatened to burn the hut but we were lucky that it was raining and so the thatch could not catch the fire. They threw a burning log into the hamlet. If it was not rain, we were going to die. But I went back to attend the funeral to make sure that he (Tsvangirai) was laid to rest.
"This happened in full view of the police. The police tried to stop them (youth) but they were too vicious. Everybody saw what happened. I don't know what they will do to them. They (police) saw the criminals.
The youth accused them of opposing moves by acting party president Nelson Chamisa to succeed the late MDC-T leader, who succumbed to cancer of the colon last Wednesday.
Khupe said she was shocked about the violence at Hamunikwa village where she was almost killed by the marauding youth that did not want "us to attend Tsvangirai's funeral".
"Tsvangirai was a very hard working man who would not have tolerated this kind of behavior. We have criminal sons who beat me and others. People must learn to respect the dead. As we arrived at the homestead we wanted to greet gogo (Tsvangirai's mother who did not want Chamisa and Tsvangirai's wife to attend the funeral) but they called us names and said they will kill us."
Speaking on VOA Studio 7 Livetalk's The Connection youth show, she added that "they beat us with stones, umbrellas and any items they could lay their hands on. They called us dissidents saying we should go back to Matabeleland. It was me, Douglas Mwonzora, Abednico Bhebhe, Lwazi Sibanda, and several other people. One stone hit me on my back. I am in pain as I speak right now.
"One man asked us to go into his hut. Those thugs threatened to burn the hut but we were lucky that it was raining and so the thatch could not catch the fire. They threw a burning log into the hamlet. If it was not rain, we were going to die. But I went back to attend the funeral to make sure that he (Tsvangirai) was laid to rest.
"This happened in full view of the police. The police tried to stop them (youth) but they were too vicious. Everybody saw what happened. I don't know what they will do to them. They (police) saw the criminals.
Source - online
