The first lady horrified by the accusations against her and her son

The first Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa and her son Collins were mentioned last Friday as potential owners of six kilograms of gold found in the possession of mining boss Henrietta Rushwaya as she tried to leave the country. Six other people including state security officials at were arrested over the case. An officer who was arrested for the offence told the police that the gold belonged to the first lady. Nobody has bothered to verify whether the allegation is correct. On the basis of a scared maybe rogue officer the enemies of the state started to peddle the allegations wrapped as truth. The fake news spread like a hell fire and those who have always been looking for a chance to hammer the first family.

The way the world took this rumour shows that there has always been an alert dangling stone on top of the first family. It was so dangling that it simply needed a rumour unsubstantiated gossip to congest the social media with just rumours. The British parliament had taken the whole parliamentary day to discuss gossip presented as truth. The excitement England had on this case is questionable.

The most puzzling issue is that the statement accusing the first lady was said in the four walls of a police station how it leaked and finds itself in the Twitter page of Jonathan Moyo is still a mystery. The police have transformed themselves into a social media force. They carry their investigations on social media. The happenings in the police station during investigations is private and confidential so releasing names of people mentioned during investigations is irresponsible and unprofessional.

The first lady took an unprecedented move and responded to these allegations. She said "I have no dealings nor involvement with Miss Henrietta Rushwaya of any illegal kind," The first lady said in a statement on Sunday.

"If there is any incriminating evidence against me, I challenge the police to present it to the nation without fear or favour," she said.

"I serve the interests of my nation and... do not engage in illegal narrow-minded pursuits like gold smuggling."

The names of the first family came up during questioning of Rushwaya and the airport officials that assisted her. The questioning of suspects is not a public event and this quiet baffling that the statements made at interrogation have been spread in the public domain. The rumour machine-went on over drive and many defaming stories about the first lady and the first family went round.The first family has vehemently denied the allegations, claiming their names were deliberately used in order to evade prosecution.

One must understand that most criminals love name dropping. Zimbabweans are normally gullible and will take anything said to be true. The person who mentions the name of the first lady said it in a vain effort to be freed. He was a scared rabbit startled by the dogs and the only option is to use the last weapon available the first lady.

Rushwaya's arrest comes as Zimbabwean authorities are battling a wave of gold smuggling amounting to an estimated $100 million (86 million euros) a month. This smuggling ring is now being curtailed and dropping in the big names is a way by the accused persons of trying to defeat the course of justice. State prosecutor Garudzo Siyadhuma last week described the case as "a classic example of organised crime" and said the "net of the syndicate" was probably "wider". This had nothing to do with the first lady or the first family.

A different first family might have tried to quell the rumour by threatening but the first lady humbled her self and broke the protocol and gave a statement to clear her name and unify the nation, but the Twitt brigade is incapable of that.They cannot rally Zimbabwean around a common identity or interest.

The moral core is a simple demand: that people who abuse the social media be held accountable. This demand clashes with the culture of Zimbabwe in which the ideal of equal justice coexists uneasily with the tacit understanding of many Zimbabweans that guarding our freedom is one of law enforcement's obligations, a commitment that has existed from independence.

One of the first things we as a nation must do is to declare that such police investigations "undermine the respect for police officers and create an impression that the entire department is not doing their work consistent with fidelity to law and fairness." How can the police investigate on social media. Zimbabwe must undertake an aggressive effort to root out unconstitutional policing practices,

The president of Zimbabwe who is being targeted has been fighting hard to remove "egregiously long delays in dealing with corruption cases.

The first lady could not smuggle six kilograms she has the whole mines to her disposal. Why would she risk her reputation by smuggling gold worthy a third of a million. This amount can easily be her lunch. The allegations against the first lady are mischievous and nonsensical It is clear that the target in this case is the president and we should stand with our nation.


Vazet2000@yahoo.co.uk