Cyber-war targets Gorden Moyo

AN anonymous person has unleashed a cyber-war on former MDC-T Bulawayo provincial chairperson Gorden Moyo by distributing information alleging he is behind chaos at a residents association.

The campaign that sources say is linked to the MDC-T split is targeting the Bulawayo Progressive Residents' Association (Bpra), with confidential information being released to influential people through e-mails.

The e-mails surfaced at the same time Bpra's sister organisation, Bulawayo Agenda, which Moyo headed before venturing into fulltime politics in 2009 was reportedly engulfed by infighting.

Sources yesterday said Bulawayo Agenda director Thabani Nyoni was being pushed out. Moyo is the patron of the two organisations.

A suspected hacker reportedly accessed Bpra co-ordinator Roderick Fayayo's e-mail address and sent out a number of the organisation's confidential documents to numerous people.

The confidential documents included, among other texts, auditors' reports, documents of receipt of donor money and Bpra financial statements as well as Fayayo's scholarship applications.

The alleged hacker, who signed off the e-mail in typical mystery Facebook blogger Baba Jukwa's asijiki (we will not give up) defiant fashion, claimed that Bpra's decisions were made from Moyo's Famona residence in Bulawayo.

The information that was sent included that on alleged abuse of the organisation's cars.

"I am sorry to say this but I had to communicate and share this information with you on this travesty," the hacker said.

"Are you also aware that Roderick (Fayayo) has a UK exit strategy?"

Reached for comment, Moyo dismissed the allegations as child's play saying he would not lose sleep over the matter.

"We won't lose sleep over the allegations. They are playing silly games. I cannot comment further because it's all child's play," said Moyo.

Bpra administration secretary Anglistone Sibanda said they had launched an investigation in a bid to identify the hacker and report the individual to the police.

Sibanda said he suspected that it was the work of some former Bpra members who were removed due to incompetence.

"These allegations were made by someone with a malicious agenda. They hacked into Fayayo's e-mail and made allegations to tarnish the image of the organisation.

"We suspect that it is some people who left the organisation due to incompetence," Sibanda said.

He said the vehicles raised in the e-mail were actually Bpra's property being used for business.

He denied that Moyo was interfering in Bpra's business.

"He is our patron, but we haven't heard from him in a long time. The organisation is run by the executive council where decisions are made and Moyo is nowhere involved in that process," Sibanda said.

He distanced the organisation from the rift between the pro-Morgan Tsvangirai and the MDC-T renewal team saying Bpra was apolitical.

"Some of us are not members of MDC, but residents of Bulawayo. The constitution is clear that we do not belong to any political party.

"We have in the organisation members of Zanu PF, MDC, MDC-T and some who are not aligned to any political party. We are there to serve the interests of the people of Bulawayo," Sibanda said.