The mystery surrounding delays in releasing police findings of investigations into Retired General Solomon Mujuru’s death took a new twist on Sunday with Home Affairs co-minister Kembo Mohadi saying the police had not briefed him of their findings.
Mohadi, whose ministry heads the Zimbabwe Republic Police, said he and his colleague Theresa Makone were yet to have sight of the outcome of the investigations.
“We have not received the report from the people who are investigating. We are waiting, just like you and everyone else. We also want to find out what happened,” he said.
“Me and Makone know nothing.” Mujuru was burnt to death at his Beatrice farm in mid-August under unclear circumstances.
Although national police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena confirmed completion of the probe last week, the police have kept results of their investigation under wraps, fuelling speculation and public anxiety.
The Mujuru family, including his widow Vice-President Joice Mujuru, have also been kept in the dark on developments, but police insiders disclosed they now preferred an inquest amid reports the preliminary results pointed towards foul play.
Last Saturday, VP Mujuru told villagers in Rushinga, Mashonaland Central, during a tour of community projects she was still waiting for the report on the cause of the death of her husband.
“Thank you for coming in your numbers to mourn your son-in-law seven weeks ago before we knew what really happened to him,” she said. “I am still waiting for an explanation.”
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VP Mujuru has also questioned the circumstances under which her husband died and said she would not find peace until the questions she has are answered.
She questioned how the general, an accomplished military man who distinguished himself during the liberation struggle and in the Zimbabwe National Army after independence, could have failed to escape the fire through low windows in their bedroom and why it took a long time for the fire to be noticed, among other things.
Parliamentarians and ordinary Zimbabweans have demanded the urgent release of the results, saying the delay had generated a lot of speculation and conspiracy theories.
Bvudzijena said investigations had been completed but the police were waiting “for the next stage”, which he refused to reveal.
The police investigation included interviewing witnesses and conducting a post-mortem.
Police sources told NewsDay the law enforcement agents were now considering giving their findings to a third party, possibly a magistrate or a judge, who would then determine whether there was a possibility of foul play and whether or not an inquest would be required.
