not go down well with other aspiring candidates resulting in clashes among the youths leading to
the postponement.
Chaotic scenes were reported during an MDC executive district meeting convened in Manyame
Park at Legislator Unganai Dickson Tarusenga’s residence on 5 July 2019. Ward 5 councilor and
district organising secretary Richard Chamutsa was physically assaulted by Ward 4 chairperson
only identified as Mangena. The assault took place in Ward 4 of St Mary’s following an altercation
over alleged mismanagement of funds at Chitungwiza Municipal Council.
War Veterans are increasingly showing their hand as protagonists in fermenting dissent and
deprivation. On 6 July 2019, war veterans from Mt Darwin district convened at Mt Darwin Sports
Club for a meeting in Ward 26. The engagement reportedly sought to discuss issues around the
welfare of war veterans and war collaborators. Never Mutasa (war veteran) who resides in Ward 24
remarked that, “as custodians of the liberation struggle, war veterans were mandated to thwart all
activities of opposition political parties”.
During a Social Welfare food distribution programme at Katamba Business Centre on 15 July in
Gokwe Chireya, some villagers did not receive their expected food handouts as war veterans
decided to take a larger share, indicating they were supposed to be given first priority. The war
veterans implicated include Timothy Magaisa, Edward Munyuki and one Chacha. As a result, the
maize was not enough for all villagers, depriving them needed aid to vulnerable groups such as
orphans, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), the elderly as well as widows. In Guruve North
constituency at Guruve Business Centre in Ward 6, agricultural extension officers Mr Lucky Karasa
and Thokozani Moyo in charge of the Command Agriculture input distribution were demanding
bribes from farmers to facilitate their access to inputs. Sums demanded were unclear but reports
indicate that only war veterans were getting first priority to command agriculture inputs thus
ordinary farmers had no option but to pay the officers.
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