'Jonathan Moyo after my bacon'

Jealousy Mawarire, the journalist who was mired in controversy ahead of last year's disputed elections, has penned another hard-hitting opinion piece accusing Information minister Jonathan Moyo Moyo of allegedly working to tarnish his image and that of the intelligence services.

The Centre for Elections and Democracy in Southern Africa (Cedsa) founder unexpectedly dragged President Robert Mugabe to court last year, forcing the election to take place before critical reforms had been put in place.

Mawarire also accuses Moyo of manipulating senior editorial staff at Zimpapers - publishers of The Herald, The Sunday Mail and The Chronicle - "to create dirty stuff to try and tarnish my image and that of the security sector by repeating ... allegations that my organisation... Cedsa was a creation of the Central Intelligence Organisation".

"Among other things, Moyo resolved to create dirty stuff to try and tarnish my image and that of the security sector by repeating Roy Bennett and Baba Jukwa's allegations that my organisation, was a creation of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO)," he said in his latest unsolicited article delivered to the Daily News yesterday.

"The sources added that Moyo also made spurious allegations that my opinion piece was published in the Daily News because the paper was fronting Vice President Joice Mujuru's interests via the CIO and that someone within the top echelons in the organisation had written the piece not me.

"While the reasons for Moyo's hallucinations may be varied, the objectives for my court application are very clear in my founding affidavit and the many media interviews I gave during the time," he said among many other allegations.

"It is for this reason that Moyo should be reminded that we know he has unfinished business with President Mugabe and his pretence to be a loyal servant of the president does not find any traction with some of us.

"Moyo's behind-the-scenes scheming has been on-going for some time, and is informed by his hatred for both President Mugabe and Vice President Joice Mujuru whom he sees as a spoiler to his regime change plot.

"Moyo demonstrated, in 2007, that he hates both the President and his deputy...," Mawarire adds. The controversial journalist has also challenged Moyo to respond to his allegations.