Tsvangirai had a team of CIO officers for protection

On March 6, 2009, serious tensions erupted between the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) and medical staff at Avenues Clinic in Harare following a tragic road accident involving then-Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, which resulted in the death of his wife, Susan. Happyton Bonyongwe, former CIO Director-General, provided insights into the chaos that ensued in his memoir, One Among Many: My Contribution to the Zimbabwean Story.

The accident occurred approximately 50 kilometers south of Harare as Tsvangirai was en route to his rural home in Buhera along the notoriously damaged Harare-Masvingo highway. A foreign aid truck collided with Tsvangirai’s Land Cruiser, causing it to overturn and tragically killing Susan, who had been married to Tsvangirai for 31 years.

Bonyongwe recounted the immediate fallout from the incident, revealing the high level of suspicion among medical staff who feared the accident might have been an assassination attempt on Tsvangirai. "Tsvangirai had with him a team of CIO officers for protection, and therefore I was one of the first people to know about the event," Bonyongwe wrote. "I contacted the late former President Robert Mugabe and briefed him. He then asked me to make arrangements for him to visit Tsvangirai in the hospital."

The situation at Avenues Clinic was charged, as the hospital had been a base for Doctors for Human Rights, leading to strained relations between the medical staff and the CIO. "Senior doctors who supported the opposition all descended on the hospital. They wanted to save Tsvangirai, whom they suspected had survived an assassination attempt by the CIO," Bonyongwe recalled, describing the tense exchanges with the doctors late that night. "Their view was that the CIO security details should have taken the bullet for the chief."

Bonyongwe attempted to explain the impracticality of their demands, noting, "This was not possible; otherwise, CIO vehicles would ram all oncoming traffic, not knowing which one would hit the principal's car. My rationale was rejected."

Fortunately, the atmosphere shifted when it was revealed that the vehicle involved in the collision was an American Embassy vehicle. "Before Mugabe's arrival, information came through that it was an American Embassy vehicle that had hit the MDC leader's car. As the Americans were trusted allies of the MDC, this information put the CIO in the clear," Bonyongwe stated.

Mugabe and First Lady Grace Mugabe arrived at the clinic to express their condolences to Tsvangirai. Bonyongwe noted that their presence provided a sense of comfort to the grieving opposition leader. Mugabe later attended Susan's funeral service at the Methodist Church in Mabelreign, Harare, offering heartfelt words of sympathy.

Reflecting on the broader implications of the incident, Bonyongwe remarked, "This would have been inconceivable before the Global Political Agreement (GPA), which went a long way toward lowering tensions in Zimbabwe." He highlighted the importance of a functional civil service and the need for security to be provided based on assessed threats rather than as a status symbol.

As the nation grappled with the loss and the political ramifications of the incident, Bonyongwe's insights shed light on the complex dynamics of security, politics, and the struggle for unity in a divided Zimbabwe.