For the Konjana family in Chegutu, every passing car, every unfamiliar footstep and every late-night knock at the door now triggers untold anxiety.
A week after Chegutu Ward 1 councillor-elect Gift Konjana was reported missing, his home has become a place of anxious waiting, where hope and fear sit side by side.
The former MDC Alliance councillor went missing after he won Chegutu Ward 1 seat last Saturday on a Zanu PF ticket following his defection to the ruling party.
Inside the family’s modest home, conversations are short and tense.
Mobile phones are constantly checked.
Relatives come and go, offering comfort but also asking questions the family cannot answer.
His wife, Jessy Garikai, overcome with emotion, was unable to speak at length when visited by this publication.
“It’s too much for me. Please leave me alone,” she said briefly, her voice trembling.
His eldest son, Hamandishe, said the uncertainty is the hardest part.
“We don’t know whether he is safe or not, dead or alive,” he said.
“We don’t know where he is. Not knowing is what is hurting us the most.”
According to his younger son, Delan, nights have been especially difficult for their mother.
“She wakes up at the slightest sound. Even the barking of dogs makes her think maybe he is outside,” Delan said.
The disappearance has disrupted the daily rhythm of the household.
Simple routines, meals, school runs, church now feel heavy with worry.
Zanu PF director of information and publicity Farai Marapira said the party is waiting for official communication from law enforcement authorities.
“As Zanu PF, we understand that this matter is now in the hands of the police and we have full belief in the police’s capacity and ability to handle it. We are waiting to be advised on what has happened,” Marapira said.
More than 200 Zanu PF members gathered at Mataka Shopping Centre on Friday for prayers and a community search.
In a message calling for the gathering, Chegutu district coordinating committee political commissariat member George Gangarahwe urged party members to mobilise in the search for the missing councillor.
“Following the disappearance of our newly elected councillor Gift Konjana to date, Zanu PF Chegutu admin leadership is inviting all ZANU PF members to gather at Mataka Shopping Centre for prayer and a thorough search for our dear comrade,” the message read.
“District chairpersons, may you please mobilise for this gathering and search tour.”
Contacted for comment, Gangarahwe said concerned members were doing what they could.
“As local Zanu PF members, that’s all we can do for our dear comrade prayers and searching within neighbouring communities,” he said.
Former MDC youth leader Peter Liwanda, who was once incarcerated alongside Konjana over alleged arson charges involving Zanu PF offices in Chinhoyi said he was deeply disturbed by his disappearance.
“It’s a complicated situation when someone crosses the floor to Zanu PF and then disappears,” said Liwanda.
“We have unanswered questions, was he fully accepted? Were some top Zanu PF unsettled by his popularity?
“Did he find himself caught in internal factional dynamics?.”
As the family’s central figure and breadwinner, Konjana managed many household responsibilities.
His sudden absence has left a void that extends beyond politics.
Friends and neighbours said the situation has cast a shadow over the wider Chegutu community.
What should have been a moment of celebration following his by-election victory has instead turned into unease.
“You cannot celebrate when someone is missing,” said a neighbour.
“The mood has completely changed.”
For the Konjana family, the search for their family member continues.
“We just want to know where he is and whatever the situation, we need the truth.” Hamandishe said.
National police spokesperson commissioner Paul Nyathi said there is currently no update from Mashonaland West province regarding the case.