Bulawayo residents have called on the Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (Jomic) to investigate the police over their alleged political activism and violent conduct towards the public.
Speaking at a Jomic peace-building meeting held at Beit Hall in Luveve at the weekend, the residents accused police of being partisan and heavy-handed when deployed to quell public disturbances.
“We have a problem with police who when other political parties report violence they are not attended to, but only when parties of their liking report violence that is when they act,” said a resident who declined to be named.
“We ask Jomic to engage the police to educate them to conduct themselves independently. They currently act like party supporters.”
In the past, police have been accused of being sympathetic to Zanu PF although Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri has publicly denied the allegations.
The residents also complained over what they termed arbitrary arrest and torture of members of the public by the police.
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Bulawayo Jomic co-chairperson Dorcas Sibanda (MDC-T) urged residents to take down details of police officers who would have violated their rights and report them to their superiors and Jomic officials.
Speaking during the same meeting, Bulawayo Jomic co-chairperson Oscar Ncube, from the Welshman Ncube-led MDC, implored police to be non-partisan when carrying out their duties.