KWEKWE — Zanu PF Mutasa Central parliamentary candidate and Herentals College owner Innocent Benza has come under fire from Kwekwe residents who accused him of bussing their children to go and register as voters in his constituency after lying to them that they were going on an educational trip.
REPORT BY BLESSED MHLANGA
Benza is alleged to have provided seven buses to ferry students from his Midlands and Bulawayo colleges to Mutasa where they were later ordered to sign affidavit forms claiming to be from that constituency.
The incident happened last weekend.
One of the livid parents Renie Kalumba said: “I was told my son was going on a free educational trip to Mutare only to find out after he returned that they had been asked to register as voters in Mutasa so that they could vote for Benza come election time.”
Kalumba said her son had to run for dear life after MDC-T supporters, who got wind of what was happening stormed the voter registration centre.
“He was so afraid for his life after MDC-T supporters came and threatened them, he ran for his life and ended up being forced to spend the night at Rusape Girls High,” she said.
Tonderai Tembo, a guardian with a child at Herentals College in Kwekwe and a self-confessed Zanu PF supporter, accused Benza of tarnishing the party’s image.
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“He is greedy because he is not worried about the future of the party. He would rather win in Mutasa and let the Mbizo MP lose. Benza also lied that our children were going on a trip then he led them into a lions’ den,” Tembo said.
A student who declined to be named said they were made to sign affidavits claiming that they were from the constituency so that they could vote for Benza.
“We were asked to sign the affidavits and register on the Mutare voters’ roll so that come July 31 we would vote for Benza. While we were in the queue to submit the forms, there was chaos as MDC-T supporters came and challenged us, those who could run ran for dear life, but I remained behind and explained to them what had happened,” the student said.
Contacted for comment early this week, Benza claimed the people who boarded the buses were his workers who wanted to register as voters in Mutasa Central as they were originally from that area.
“I have mines and colleges in Bulawayo and Kwekwe. These are the people from Mutasa Central constituency who work in my mines and colleges. Maybe some people took advantage of the transport facility to come and register, but they are from this constituency,” he said.
