(Last Updated on November 29, 2022 by ZIMDAILY EDITOR)
HARARE – The country’s security officers have reportedly been commandeered to attend Zanu-PF’s Herbert Chitepo School of Ideology.
About two weeks ago, district police commanding officers cascaded the message to their subordinates, opting to tell them verbally, instead of sending out radio messages “for fear of the information being leaked”.
A source in the security sector told NewsDay that police, military, prison and Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) officers from Harare will attend the school of ideology at Morris Depot.
“We were told that our attendance of the lectures is our vote. It means we are being commanded to vote for Zanu-PF,” the source said.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who came to power on the back of a November 2017 coup, is reportedly pulling all stops to make sure he gets another five-year term by bagging as many votes as possible, especially from the civil service.
Harare province has seven policing districts, which are Harare Central, Harare Suburban, Mbare, Harare East, Harare North, Harare South and Chitungwiza.
There are more than 40 000 police officers in Zimbabwe, with about 6 900 of them stationed in Harare.
There are also an estimated 8 000 CIO officers in Zimbabwe, with a huge chunk working from the capital.
“All districts will second their personnel to attend the two-day lectures, expected to commence on November 28, 2022, and will run for a month,” the source added.
National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi denied the allegations, saying police officers often attend refresher courses.
“As far as I am concerned, I’m not aware of those allegations. As a police or members of the uniformed forces, police officers conduct refresher courses. They conduct lectures on various courses, but those topics have nothing to do with politics,” he said.
“So, I’m not aware of the allegations you are raising, but maybe your source can provide details. I’ll find out if those allegations hold any water at all.”
Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services spokesperson Mayor Kanyezi did not respond to messages sent on her WhatsApp, although she blue-ticked them.
She also did not pick calls on her mobile phone.Asked if the military was seconding its personnel to the Chitepo lectures and how many would attend, army spokesperson Colonel Alphios Makotore said: “We acknowledge the receipt of your media enquiry on November 14, 2022. However, we do not discuss military programmes in the public media.”
No comment could be obtained from the CIO.
NEWSDAY