Poisoning fears stop Mnangagwa eating in public

EMMERSON MNANGAGWA, the Zimbabwean president, is so afraid of being poisoned by rivals that he no longer eats in public, sources have said.

The extreme precautions being taken emerged as Zimbabwe prepared for the funeral of Robert Mugabe, its former liberator whose 37-year rule left a legacy of grinding poverty and vicious political in-fighting.

It underscores the paranoia at the highest level of government and the fears of another coup less than two years after Mr Mugabe was removed from power by the military-backed current regime.

The body of Mr Mugabe, who died in Singapore last week aged 95, was due to be flown back to Zimbabwe this weekend for burial in the National Heroes Acre – a graveyard for the heroes of the struggle against white minority rule built by North Korean architects.

There was scant evidence of mourning in the capital Harare yesterday, with government newspapers lauding Mr Mugabe’s legacy while independent publications lamented his slide into autocracy. “End of an era as Mugabe dies, leaves Zim poor, divided,” said the privately-owned Daily News.

Mr Mnangagwa seized power in a bloodless coup from Mr Mugabe in November 2017 just five months after Mr Mnangagwa was allegedly poisoned during a rally in southern Zimbabwe causing him to be airlifted to South Africa for emergency treatment.

Rumours abounded – later denied by Mr Mnangagwa – that he had been poisoned by an ice cream from a dairy owned by Grace Mugabe, the former first lady of Zimbabwe who was widely believed to be plotting her own ascent to power. Mrs Mugabe strenuously denied the accusations at the time.

Since taking office Mr Mnangagwa has done nothing to arrest Zimbabwe’s economic slide. His fears are understood to have been heightened in July after his vice president, Constantino Chiwenga, fell ill and was flown to China for emergency treatment.

“Chinese contacts have told us that Chiwenga is being treated for poisoning in China but they have not given us the name of the substance. We are told he is unlikely to survive,” said a source close to the family.

A highly-placed source said Mr Mnangagwa had decided to stop eating at public engagements in the last two months, not long after Chiwenga was taken ill. “He no longer goes to restaurants,” added a second well-informed source in Harare last night.

“Sometimes he goes to the OK Bazaars for [takeaway] food, as that is random, and he will eat that food and sometimes from other takeaways.”

Nick Mangwana, the information ministry spokesman, declined the opportunity to comment on the revelations.