KWEKWE — Home Affairs co-minister Theresa Makone at the weekend called on the military and police to arrest Zimbabwe National Army Brigadier-General Douglas Nyikayaramba and charge him with attempting to incite a mutiny in the country.
“Nyikayaramba should be charged with inciting mutiny in the army. He wanted the army to mutiny against the will of the people as expressed through a democratic election by saying the soldiers should not salute a President without liberation war credentials,” said Makone.
She, however, said she took solace in the fact that Nyikayaramba — who has courted controversy by making political statements and calling MDC president, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, a security threat — was not the army.
“Nyikayaramba is not the army and does not command the army, but it is clear that he violated the constitutional Act which creates the army and mandates it to protect national sovereignty and not to dabble in politics as correctly said by (Commander of Defence Forces General Constantine) Chiwenga. We, therefore, wait to see if Chiwenga meant his words,” Makone said. The minister also pledged to defend the electorate ahead of the next general elections which are likely to be held next year.
“As Home Affairs minister, I want to assure you that we will work around the clock to defend you during election time,” she said.
Addressing over 3 000 people at the same rally at Mbizo Stadium, Tsvangirai accused Zanu PF of abusing “men in uniform” as spokespersons in a bid to defend what he described as a now-defunct party.
“Zanu PF is now defunct and bankrupt in ideas, instead it’s being replaced by soldiers, police and CIO (Central Intelligence Organisation) to defend them. This is where we have a dispute with Zanu PF,” he said.
The Premier told supporters unless there was a realignment of the security sector to become truly national institutions, the three political partners in the inclusive government would not reach consensus in the ongoing negotiations over an election roadmap. President Robert Mugabe has defended
