FORMER war veterans’ leader Jabulani Sibanda has accused President Robert Mugabe of treating him harshly compared to other alleged supporters of former Vice-President Joice Mujuru and suggested his persecution was tribally motivated.
BY RICHARD CHIDZA
Sibanda was arrested last year for allegedly saying Mugabe and First Lady Grace Mugabe planned a bedroom coup.
His case for allegedly undermining the authority of the President is pending in the courts.
However, Sibanda told NewsDay in an interview that those accused of playing a leading role in the alleged plot to kill Mugabe had not been arrested.
“I do not know whether he is in charge of his faculties even.
“I do not want to believe that Mugabe is a tribalist; because Nicholas Goche who is accused of having sought to hire snipers to kill Mugabe is sitting at his house, but Sibanda who is accused of insulting the President is locked up with no bail.
“Is it selective justice that a Ndebele who allegedly insulted him is jailed?”
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He said it was difficult to get justice at the courts and in Zanu PF.
“The same guys in charge of the party disciplinary committee are not affording people the right to be heard,”he said.
“They are running the courts at State level and are in charge of the justice delivery system as well.
“Should I then have confidence in them if they are already trampling on my rights at party level?”
Sibanda was removed from his post of Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association chairperson after Mugabe threatened to set ‘his army’ against him.
The outspoken Sibanda said he was a victim of Mugabe’s rule after nine members of his party were killed during Gukurahundi.
The Gukurahundi massacres reportedly claimed the lives of more than 20 000 villagers in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces.
“Nine members of my family were killed by the Fifth Brigade,” he said.
“I went through torture that would have brought down the Kariba electricity grid, but I stomached that and continued to work for the revolution.
“Surely somebody must recognise that. I worked for Zanu PF for the sake of peace alone.”
He said he was convinced, Mugabe knew “in his heart” that whatever accusations were being leveled against the Mujuru camp were lies.
“The thing is this is a façade, Mugabe knows it is a lie that Mujuru did not do anything, knows Goche never sought to kill him and also knows that Jabulani did not insult him,” he said.
