Tini Mabiba, former Mwenzi district organizer of the Citizens’ Coalition for Change then led by Nelson Chamisa, has been summoned to the Masvingo Magistrate’s Court over political violence in Rutinga that occurred last year in the run-up to the coordinated elections.
The violence saw Chamisa supporters clash with the police, who resorted to throwing tear gas grenades to disperse CCC supporters who were awaiting the arrival of their leader on 23 July 2023.
According to TellZim News summons, Mapepa, who was then a Rutenga CCC rally convener, was asked to appear before the Masvingo District Court on April 22 to answer allegations of incitement.
“You are required to summon Tinei Mapepa of No. 67 Muzhanje Ranch, Mwenezi cell to appear in person before this court at Masvingo Magistrate Court on 22 April 2024 at 0800 AM to answer the allegations raised on the charge of incitement as defined in the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act CH9.23 “, said the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) summons.
In an interview, Mabiba, who now supports the Blue Movement allegedly led by Chamisa, said he had not committed any crime but that the motive behind the allegations was to instill fear in those living in rural communities who are challenging Zanu NP.
“As supporters of President Chamisa, we committed no crime on the day in question and everything we did was within the bounds of the law. The whole idea behind these arrests is to sow fear and silence those who do not hesitate to point out the failure of Zanu PF in the hinterland,” Mabiba said. Like our region.”
After Chamisa was late in arriving at the Rutenga Growth Point gathering place, police officers ordered CCC supporters to disperse, but the crowd was defiant, vowing to wait until their leader arrived.
This ignited ongoing battles between riot police and CCC supporters as police threw tear gas and fired several warning shots into the air to intimidate supporters, leading to some picking up rocks in retaliation against the officers.
Chamisa later passed through Growth Point at dusk to find his united supporters waiting patiently for him despite being subjected to tear gas earlier.
He only stopped briefly, waving to supporters before heading to Ngundu Growth Point where more tear gas grenades were hurled at CCC supporters who dared to catch a glimpse of their party leader. Telezem News
