News / National
'Grace Mugabe must be arrested over PhD'
06 Mar 2018 at 05:32hrs | Views
THE Welshman Ncube-led MDC has called on President Emmerson Mnangagwa to dissolve the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) and appoint an uncompromised commission with capacity to probe and cause the arrest of former First Lady Grace Mugabe over her PhD saga.
MDC spokesperson, Kurauone Chihwayi, said ZACC should show impartiality through probing Grace just as they have done with University of Zimbabwe vice-chancellor, Levi Nyagura, who was recently arrested over his role in supervising Grace's controversial PhD awarded in 2014.
Nyagura faces criminal abuse of office charges over his role in allegedly facilitating Grace's PhD.
"We are aware that the court heard in 2011 how Nyagura approved Grace's application without the knowledge and recommendations of the departmental board and faculty of higher degrees committee. That was in violation of UZ quality assurance guidelines and benchmark.
"As MDC, it is our conviction that the real culprit here is Grace Mugabe. We believe she initiated the whole embarrassing academic scandal. In our view Grace is accused number one," Chihwayi said in a statement at the weekend.
Grace, once a secretary in former President Robert Mugabe's office, was thrust into the spotlight when it emerged she was graduating with a PhD in Sociology three months after enrolment.
Mugabe has said Grace was being harassed for her PhD.
"Now we learn with great shock that ZACC is wasting taxpayers' money and resources on an investigation into Grace's PhD supervisor, Professor Claude Mararike, with a view to check if he possessed the requisite qualifications for the job.
"We feel these developments on the ground point to a ZACC that cannot exhibit fair play and casts doubt on the genuineness of the anti-corruption unit in stamping out corruption. We are demanding the arrest of Grace Mugabe as this will prove to the nation that no one is above the law," Chihwayi added.
Zacc has been probing former Energy minister Samuel Undenge, former Foreign minister Walter Mzembi, Highfield West legislator Psychology Maziwisa and television personality Oscar Pambuka over corruption allegations.
MDC spokesperson, Kurauone Chihwayi, said ZACC should show impartiality through probing Grace just as they have done with University of Zimbabwe vice-chancellor, Levi Nyagura, who was recently arrested over his role in supervising Grace's controversial PhD awarded in 2014.
Nyagura faces criminal abuse of office charges over his role in allegedly facilitating Grace's PhD.
"We are aware that the court heard in 2011 how Nyagura approved Grace's application without the knowledge and recommendations of the departmental board and faculty of higher degrees committee. That was in violation of UZ quality assurance guidelines and benchmark.
"As MDC, it is our conviction that the real culprit here is Grace Mugabe. We believe she initiated the whole embarrassing academic scandal. In our view Grace is accused number one," Chihwayi said in a statement at the weekend.
Mugabe has said Grace was being harassed for her PhD.
"Now we learn with great shock that ZACC is wasting taxpayers' money and resources on an investigation into Grace's PhD supervisor, Professor Claude Mararike, with a view to check if he possessed the requisite qualifications for the job.
"We feel these developments on the ground point to a ZACC that cannot exhibit fair play and casts doubt on the genuineness of the anti-corruption unit in stamping out corruption. We are demanding the arrest of Grace Mugabe as this will prove to the nation that no one is above the law," Chihwayi added.
Zacc has been probing former Energy minister Samuel Undenge, former Foreign minister Walter Mzembi, Highfield West legislator Psychology Maziwisa and television personality Oscar Pambuka over corruption allegations.
Source - newsday
