Zanu PF in witchhunt over fake Press statements
HEADS are set to roll in Zanu PF after the party launched a probe to unearth the source of fake Press statements calling for the investigation of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s sons for money laundering, party officials have said.
Disgruntled party members have resorted to exposing the party rot through fake Press statements as the two factions — one reportedly aligned to Mnangagwa and the other to his deputy Vice-President Constatino Chiwenga — fight to out-manoeuvre each other.
Following the arrest of party spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa's son Neville, Press statements purported to have been issued by Zanu PF have gone viral on social media, demanding investigation of Mnangagwa’s sons over alleged crimes of money laundering.
Neville was arrested for dealing in foreign currency and money laundering and contravening the Telecommunications Act after a Starlink router was recovered at his house on Thursday last week.
In one statement purported to have been issued by Mutsvangwa, he expressed his disgruntlement over the arrest of his son Neville, and threatened to expose Mnangagwa’s sons for various malpractices.
The Mutsvangwa fake Press statement claimed that Mnangagwa's sons Sean and Collins were in the same business as Neville.
Later, another fake Press statement was issued in the name of Chiwenga, calling for investigation of all high profile cases based on what had been exposed by Mutsvangwa in his dismissed statement.
Mutsvangwa has distanced himself from the statements.
Zanu PF has also dismissed the statements.
Party national secretary for security and Mnangagwa’s confidante Lovemore Matuke told NewsDay that there was a “thorough” investigation of the most recent statement to find out who is behind it.
“For the most recent one that you are talking about, we have instituted an investigation and we are trying to find out who is behind it. We do not have suspects as yet. We are still trying to find out, but we are doing thorough investigations on who could be issuing those statements,” he said.
Recently, presidential spokesperson George Charamba said the issuance of fake Press statements was threatening to “go out of hand”, adding that there was an “insidious” hand behind their production.
Speaking to our sister paper The Standard on Saturday, Mutsvangwa said he knew the people who were behind the fake Press statements but was reluctant to name them.
“So they are trying to manipulate the President and me,” Mutsvangwa said. “I have been in this game for a long time. It’s a futile attempt so that the President has an attitude about me, to create a gap between me and the President. I have been with the President since I was 22 years old.”