KWEKWE — Mbizo MP Settlement Chikwinya and two other officials were yesterday arrested and detained for four hours at the police law and order section over allegations of stealing from their MDC-T party offices.
BLESSED MHLANGA
Chikwinya, together with Searchmore Muringani and Luckmore Senge, were accompanied to the police station by their lawyer Caroline Mugabe, who confirmed that her clients were under investigation after acting Midlands North MDC-T chairman Sedwell Bhebhe filed a report.
“My clients were held at the law and order section from 11am to 3pm over allegations that they stole three computers, a public address system, generator, 29 chairs and a photocopier from the provincial office, but they have since been released without charge,” Mugabe said.
Mugabe said Chikwinya, who is aligned to the MDC-Team faction led by “fired” secretary-general Tendai Biti, admitted that he took some of the property from the party office following a directive from deputy treasurer-general Elton Mangoma.
“They confirmed that they removed some of the property which includes two computers, photocopier, 29 chairs and three wooden desks, on May 2 following an order by Mangoma, who is the chief custodian of all party assets,” she said.
Chikwinya’s lawyer also submitted that the assets did not belong to the MDC-T, but to a private company Laphonic Investments where Mangoma is a director.
On April 30, Mangoma wrote a letter to Chikwinya advising him to take control of all party assets for safekeeping in the wake of MDC-T infighting.
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“Following threats to party properties in the MDC-T’s various provinces in particular in Manicaland, Midlands North and Mashonaland West provinces, the party has resolved to take security measures to safeguard its properties,” Mangoma wrote.
Bhebhe confirmed that he had filed a police report against Chikwinya accusing him of taking the property “without consulting the legitimate provincial leadership which was responsible for electing Biti, Mangoma and others into the positions they were now using to deny access to party property”.
“Unless there is another party, all provincial properties and offices are held in trust by the provincial leadership and therefore anyone who wants to move them should first tell that leadership,” said Bhebhe.
The Midlands North provincial leadership has distanced itself from the Biti-led MDC-T faction which “suspended” Tsvangirai and other members of the national standing committee last month.
